People visit the riverside in front of the Lujiazui financial district, during the National People’s Congress (NPC) in Shanghai, China, March 7, 2023.
Aly Song | Reuters
Asia-Pacific markets rose on Tuesday, after the US Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 25 basis points and major US indexes continued their post-election rally.
In Asia, investors will be watching the final day of China’s National People’s Congress, which is expected to see the announcement of fiscal stimulus aimed at supporting the world’s second-largest economy.
Japanese household spending in September fell more slowly than expected, official data on Friday showed. Real household spending fell 1.1%, lower than the 2.1% decline expected by a poll of economists by Reuters.
Japan Nikkei 225 rose 0.74%, while the broad-based Topix rose 0.49%.
South Korea Kospi up almost 1%, and small capital Kosdaq gained 1.71%.
Futures for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index stood at 21,301, indicating a strong open compared to the HSI’s close of 20,953. If stocks follow futures, the Hong Kong index will hit its highest level in about a month.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.07%, on pace for the third consecutive day of gains.
Overnight in the US, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose on Thursday, extending the rally after Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election and the latest rate cut by the Federal Reserve.
The S&P 500 gained 0.74% to close at a record high of 5,973.10. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.51% to 19,269.46, closing above the 19,000 mark for the first time.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed, less than one point. All three indices hit record highs during the session. The Dow had gained 1,500 points in the previous session.
— CNBC’s Lisa Kailai Han and Jesse Pound contributed to this report.
