CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian markets are trading mostly higher on Thursday, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight, amid positive hints of another rate cut in a speech by U.S. Fed Chair Jerome Powell as traders assessed the implications of escalating U.S.-China trade friction. Asian markets closed mostly higher on Wednesday.
Speaking on tariffs, Powell stressed that there is a risk that the slow pass-through of tariffs starts to look like persistent inflation. Powell's remarks set the tone for additional interest rate cut expectations.
With the publication of the data being indefinitely postponed due to the ongoing US government shutdown, traders are likely to keep an eye on remarks by several Fed officials.
The Australian market is trading significantly higher on Thursday, adding to the gains in the previous two sessions, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is moving above the 9,050 mark to fresh all-time highs, with gains in gold miners, energy and financial stocks partially offset by weakness in technology stocks.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 94.30 points or 1.05 percent to 9,085.20, after touching a fresh all-time high of 9,109.70 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 90.80 points or 0.98 percent to 9,389.80. Australian stocks ended significantly higher on Wednesday.
Among major miners, BHP Group and Rio Tinto are edging up 0.5 percent each, while Mineral Resources is losing more than 1 percent and Fortescue is down almost 1 percent.
Oil stocks are mostly higher. Beach energy is gaining almost 2 percent and Origin Energy is edging up 0.2 percent, while Woodside Energy and Santos are adding almost 1 percent each.
In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block is losing almost 1 percent and Appen is down almost 1 percent, while Xero,Zip and WiseTech Global are slipping more than 1 percent each.
Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank and Westpac are advancing almost 2 percent each, while ANZ Banking is adding more than 2 percent and National Australia Bank is gaining more than 1 percent.
Among gold miners, Newmont is gaining almost 4 percent, Northern Star Resources is adding almost 3 percent and Genesis Minerals is surging almost 7 percent, while Resolute Mining and Evolution Mining are advancing more than 3 percent each.
In other news, shares in AMP are jumping more than 9 percent after the financial services company reported that total assets under management increased 3.6 percent quarter-on-quarter to $159.5 billion.
In economic news, the jobless rate is Australia came in at a seasonally adjusted 4.5 percent in September, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday. That was above forecasts for 4.3 percent and up from 4.2 percent in August.
The Australian economy added 14,900 jobs last month, missing expectations for an increase of 20,500 following the loss of 11,800 jobs in August. The participation rate improved to 67.0 percent, exceeding expectations for 66.8 percent, which would have been unchanged.
In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.648 on Thursday.
The Japanese market is significantly higher on Thursday, extending the strong gains in the previous session, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is moving well above the 48,000 mark, with gains in financial, automaker and technology stocks.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 48,088.07, up 415.40 points or 0.87 percent, after touching a high of 48,201.50 earlier. Japanese shares ended sharply higher on Wednesday.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is surging more than 4 percent, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is edging down 0.5 percent. Among automakers, Toyota is gaining almost 2 percent and Honda is edging up 0.3 percent.
In the tech space, Advantest is edging down 0.5 percent, while Screen Holdings is gaining almost 1 percent and Tokyo Electron is adding more than 3 percent.
In the banking sector, Mizuho Financial is gaining almost 2 percent, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is adding more than 1 percent and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is advancing more than 2 percent.
Among the major exporters, Mitsubishi Electric and Sony are edging up 0.2 percent each, while Panasonic and Canon are flat.
Among other major gainers, Renesas Electronics is jumping almost 6 percent and Socionext is surging more than 5 percent, while Tokyo Electric Power and Furukawa Electric are gaining more than 4 percent each. Chiba Bank, Taisei, Aeon and Japan Exchange are advancing almost 3 percent each.
Conversely, BayCurrent is tumbling more than 8 percent and Toho is losing almost 5 percent.
In economic news, the value of core machinery orders in Japan was down a seasonally adjusted 0.9 percent on month in August, the Cabinet Office said on Thursday - coming in at 890.0 billion yen. That missed forecasts for an increase of 0.4 percent following the 4.6 percent decline in July.
On a yearly basis, orders were up 1.6 percent - again shy of expectations for a gain of 4.8 percent and slowing from 4.9 percent in the previous month. For the third quarter of 2025, orders are seen lower by 4.0 percent on quarter and up 5.0 percent on year at 2.773 trillion yen.
The total value of machinery orders received by 280 manufacturers operating in Japan increased 7.3 percent on month and 4.9 percent on year in August.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the higher 150 yen-range on Thursday.
Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea and Taiwan are up 1.8 and 1.2 percent, respectively. New Zealand, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia are higher by between 0.1 and 0.6 percent each.
On Wall Street, stocks showed wild swings over the course of the trading day on Wednesday, extending the substantial volatility seen during the previous session. The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line.
While the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 ended the day firmly in positive territory, the narrower Dow posted a slim loss. The Dow edged down 17.15 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 46,253.31, but the S&P 500 rose 26.75 points or 0.4 percent to 6,671.06 and the Nasdaq climbed 148.38 points or 0.7 percent to 22,679.08.
The major European markets also turned in a mixed performance on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index surged by 2.0 percent, the German DAX Index dipped by 0.2 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index fell by 0.3 percent.
Crude oil prices fell on Wednesday following the rapid escalation of friction between the U.S. and China, while oversupply concerns also loom. West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery was down $0.33 or 0.56 percent at $58.37 per barrel.
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