The Tokyo stock exchange is up on Thursday.
(Photo: AP)
Sydney The announced tightening of monetary policy by the US Federal Reserve will give the stock exchanges in Asia a tailwind on Thursday. The US monetary authorities will in future reduce their security purchases twice as fast as before and are aiming for three interest rate hikes in 2022.
“The economy no longer needs increasing levels of political support,” said Fed chairman Jerome Powell in a press conference after the two-day session ended. “Powell didn’t think the Fed was behind the curve in fighting inflation,” wrote Tapas Strickland, economics director at National Australia Bank (NAB). “The risk mood remains positive.”
The Nikkei index, which comprises 225 values, was 1.8 percent higher at 28,968 points. The broader Topix index rose 1.2 percent and stood at 2007 points.
The Shanghai Stock Exchange was 0.3 percent up. The index of the most important companies in Shanghai and Shenzen lost 0.1 percent.
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In Asian foreign exchange trading, the dollar gained 0.1 percent to 114.12 yen and stagnated at 6.3673 yuan. In relation to the Swiss currency, it was quoted hardly changed at 0.9250 francs. At the same time, the euro remained almost unchanged at 1.1286 dollars and was quoted little changed at 1.0441 francs. The pound sterling lost 0.1 percent to $ 1.3255.
There is also positive economic data from Japan: The country’s exports picked up speed in November due to increased demand for cars. Exports rose 20.5 percent year-on-year last month, according to data from the Treasury Department on Thursday. They remained slightly behind the mean market forecast of a Reuters survey, which was based on 21.2 percent. It was the ninth month in a row that there was growth. In October exports had increased by 9.4 percent.
The data shows that Japan is on track to overcome supply bottlenecks from automakers and other key industries. Car exports increased by 4.1 percent compared to the previous year, which is the first increase in the industry in three months.
More: In the USA, the risk of inflation is much greater than in the euro zone. But uncertainty is high on both sides of the Atlantic.