[ad_1]
SINGAPORE shares in Asia-Pacific were especially higher in trading on Thursday, after investors reacted to data releases in Australia and China.
South Korea’s Kospi led regional gains as it rose 1.01% in afternoon trading.
Mainland Chinese stocks were higher in the afternoon, with Shanghai’s composite rising 0.38% while Shenzhen’s component was up 0.445%. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong lost 0.4 percent.
A private survey released on Thursday showed Chinese service activity growth slowed in May. The Caixin/Markit services Purchasing Managers’ Index for May came in at 55.1 on Thursday, down from April’s 56.3. Still, that was well above the 50 level separating expansion from contraction.
PMI values above 50 represent expansion, while those below that level represent contraction. PMI measurements are sequential and represent month-over-month expansion or contraction.
Elsewhere in Japan, the Nikkei 225 gained 0.47% while the Topix index rose 0.83%.
Shares in Australia also rose, with the S&P/ASX 200 climbing 0.44%. Australian retail sales rose 1.1% month-on-month in April on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to data released Thursday by the country’s Bureau of Statistics.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside of Japan gained 0.33%.
Shares on Wall Street rose overnight. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 25.07 points to 34,600.38, while the S&P 500 climbed 0.14% to 4,208.12. The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.14% to 13,756.33 points.
Currencies and Oil
The Japanese yen was trading at 109.67 per dollar, weaker than levels below 109.5 seen against the greenback earlier this week. The Australian dollar changed hands at USD 0.7744 after climbing from levels around USD 0.772 yesterday.
Oil prices were higher in the afternoon of trading hours in Asia, with the international benchmark Brent oil futures rising 0.56% to $71.75 a barrel. US crude oil futures rose 0.52% to $69.19 a barrel.
[ad_2]
picture credit