TOKYO — Asian shares traded mostly higher Monday, cheered by a record finish last week on Wall Street.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 jumped 1.5% in morning trading to 45,729.33, rebounding from a decline late last week over concerns about the Bank of Japan selling its holdings. Such concerns abated as markets began to see any move as gradual.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.4% to 8,811.10, while South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.8% to 3,472.82. In contrast, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 0.9% to 26,306.60, and the Shanghai Composite was little changed, inching up less than 0.1% to 3,821.83.
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 rose 0.5%, closing out its sixth winning week in the last seven. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 172 points, or 0.4%, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.7%. All three indices hit all-time highs for a second straight day.
Specifically, the S&P 500 increased 32.40 points to 6,664.36. The Dow rose 172.85 points to 46,315.27, and the Nasdaq gained 160.75 points to 22,631.48.
The rally has been driven by expectations that the Federal Reserve will continue to cut interest rates to boost the economy. The central bank lowered rates for the first time this year last Wednesday. If the Fed keeps cutting interest rates, it could give the struggling housing market a boost.
However, growing expectations for rate cuts mean the market could face disappointment and drop sharply if the Fed does not cut as much as traders expect. Fed officials have said more rate cuts are likely this year and next.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell said last week that the central bank may have to react quickly due to stubbornly high inflation in the U.S. economy, a slowing job market, and tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump that threaten to push inflation higher.
“Every time the market seems to be running out of momentum, it fools most of us by pushing to higher heights,” said Jay Woods, chief market strategist at Freedom Capital Markets. As traders continue to monitor new highs daily, they are focusing on what Fed officials will say during their speaking engagements this week.
In the bond market, Treasury yields ended last week relatively steady. The yield on the 10-year Treasury edged up to 4.12% last Friday from 4.11% late Thursday.
In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude rose 34 cents to $63.02 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, added 40 cents to $67.08 a barrel.
In currency trading, the U.S. dollar rose to 148.31 Japanese yen from 147.91 yen. The euro declined slightly, costing $1.1733, down from $1.1745.
https://www.clickorlando.com/business/2025/09/22/asian-shares-are-mostly-higher-after-wall-streets-record-week/
