Asian markets seen firmer after Wall Street turns positive
The U-turn in US stocks, however, was already reflected in some markets, so the impact in Asia may be muted, said Rodrigo Catril, a senior FX strategist at National Australia Bank
Asian markets are expected to swing higher on Thursday, after US stocks reversed course from a three-day losing streak that led the technology-heavy Nasdaq into correction territory.
The U-turn in US stocks, however, was already reflected in some markets, so the impact in Asia may be muted, said Rodrigo Catril, a senior FX strategist at National Australia Bank.
"We still expect markets to open with a positive turn, but we don't expect a meaningful acceleration of it," Catril said. "It should be a positive open but not a bombastic open."
Australian S&P/ASX 200 futures YAPcm1 rose 1.28% in early trading and Japan's Nikkei 225 futures NKc1 added 0.13%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index futures HSIc1 rose 0.85%.
MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe gained 1.44%.
Wall Street ended higher on Wednesday after investors ploughed into technology stocks, taking advantage of the recent dip. Stay-at-home companies such as Facebook Inc and Google-parent Alphabet Inc climbed, while electric-car maker Tesla Inc rebounded nearly 11% after suffering its biggest one-day percentage drop.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 439.58 points, or 1.6%, to 27,940.47, the S&P 500 gained 67.12 points, or 2.01%, to 3,398.96 and the Nasdaq Composite added 293.87 points, or 2.71%, to 11,141.56.
Oil prices recovered some of the losses they saw in the prior trading session when they hovered near three-month lows.
US crude CLc1 rose 3.5% and Brent LCOc1 added 2.5%, although Covid-19 outbreaks still threaten to slow a global economic recovery. US crude eased 0.5% in early Asian trade on Thursday to $37.88 a barrel.
Stephen Innes, chief global markets strategist at Australian financial services firm AxiCorp, said in a note that "in the background ... continues to be Covid-19 concerns and the delicate balancing act needed to return economies to a new normal and manage the likely rise in cases in the northern hemisphere when social activities move indoors, and (Covid-19) could spread more aggressively."
The US dollar slid from a four-week high on Wednesday, led by losses against the euro after a report about European Central Bank officials becoming more confident in their outlook for the region's recovery.
The dollar index =USD fell 0.325%, with the euro EUR= up 0.03% to $1.1806.
The safe-haven greenback was also hit by investors' growing appetite for risk as US stocks rebounded.
US Treasury yields rose on Wednesday after the government sold $35 billion in 10-year notes to slightly soft demand.