CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stock markets are mostly higher on Friday following the record closing highs overnight on Wall Street amid upbeat economic data and corporate earnings results. The markets also benefited from continuing optimism following the signing of the U.S.-China trade deal on Wednesday.
In addition, investor sentiment was boosted by data showing that China's economy grew in line with expectations. Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics showed that China's gross domestic product or GDP grew 6.1 percent in 2019, which was well within the target of 6 to 6.5 percent growth.
The Australian market is extending its winning streak to a fourth day, following the positive cues from Wall Street.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is adding 38.90 points or 0.55 percent to 7,080.70, off a record high of 7,088.10 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 34.40 points or 0.48 percent to 7,193.00. Australian stocks hit fresh record highs again on Thursday.
Among the major miners, Fortescue Metals is gaining more than 2 percent, Rio Tinto is rising almost 2 percent and BHP is advancing 1 percent.
Gold miners are also higher even as gold prices edged lower overnight. Evolution Mining and Newcrest Mining are rising 0.7 percent each.
The big four banks - Westpac, Commonwealth Bank, ANZ Banking and National Australia Bank - are advancing in a range of 0.4 percent to 1.0 percent.
In the tech sector, Appen is higher by more than 2 percent, Wisetech Global is advancing more than 1 percent and Xero is adding 0.4 percent.
Meanwhile, oil stocks are mostly lower despite crude oil prices rising overnight. Woodside Petroleum is declining 0.4 percent and Oil Search is edging down 0.1 percent, while Santos is adding 0.2 percent.
Nufarm said its expects its EBITDA or earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation for the half year January 31 to be about half of its year-ago period result, partly due to its Australia and New Zealand business being impacted by a continuation of extreme climatic conditions in Australia. Shares of the agricultural chemical company are losing more than 11 percent.
In the currency market, the Australian dollar is lower against the U.S. dollar on Friday. The local currency was quoted at $0.6897, down from $0.6905 on Thursday.
The Japanese stock market is rising, tracking the record closing highs on Wall Street. In addition, a weaker yen boosted exporters' shares.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is adding 128.48 points or 0.54 percent to 24,061.61, after touching a high of 24,115.95 in early trades. Japanese stocks closed marginally higher on Thursday.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group Corp. is adding 0.4 percent and Fast Retailing is up 0.6 percent.
Among tech stocks, Tokyo Electron is advancing 1 percent, while Advantest is unchanged.
The major exporters are higher on a weaker yen. Mitsubishi Electric is advancing more than 2 percent, Panasonic is higher by almost 1 percent, Sony is rising 0.6 percent and Canon is edging up 0.1 percent.
Among auto stocks, Honda Motor is adding 0.7 percent and Toyota Motor is edging up 0.1 percent.
Nissan has accused former Chairman Carlos Ghosn of using company funds for private events abroad. Shares of Nissan are adding 0.5 percent.
In the oil sector, Inpex is lower by almost 1 percent, while Japan Petroleum is unchanged despite crude oil prices rising overnight.
Among the other major gainers, Fuji Electric and Yokogawa Electric are rising more than 4 percent, while Yamato Holdings is higher by more than 3 percent.
On the flip side, Kyowa Kirin is losing more than 2 percent and Kansai Electric Power is lower by almost 2 percent.
In economic news, Japan will see November numbers for its tertiary industry index today.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 110 yen-range on Friday.
Elsewhere in Asia, Shanghai, South Korea, New Zealand, Malaysia and Taiwan are also higher, while Indonesia is declining. Singapore and Hong Kong are flat with a negative bias.
On Wall Street, stocks closed at new record highs on Thursday, benefiting from recent upward momentum following the official signing of the U.S.-China phase one trade deal on Wednesday. The deal did not address some major issues and leaves significant tariffs in place, but the agreement has still helped lift some of the uncertainty generated by the trade war between the two economic superpowers. A batch of largely upbeat U.S. economic data also contributed to the buying interest.
The Dow jumped 267.42 points or 0.9 percent to 29,297.64, the Nasdaq spiked 98.44 points or 1.1 percent to 9,357.13 and the S&P 500 surged up 27.52 points or 0.8 percent to 3,316.81.
The major European markets turned in a mixed performance on Thursday. While the French CAC 40 Index inched up by 0.1 percent, the German DAX Index closed just below the unchanged line and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index fell by 0.4 percent.
Crude oil futures settled notably higher on Thursday, rebounding sharply from losses in the previous session, thanks to a drop in U.S. crude inventories and the signing of a partial U.S.-China trade deal. WTI crude for February ended up $0.71 or about 1.2 percent, at $58.52 a barrel.
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