Global markets higher with Japan stocks surge over 3% after US retail data boosts Wall Street
abcnews.go.comJapanese stocks are leading gains in world markets after Wall Street close to its record heights as data showed the U.S. economy is holding up better than expected
Japanese stocks led the gains in World markets Friday after Wall Street rallied to one of its best days of the year as data showed the U.S. economy is holding up better than expected, with particular credit going to the country’s shoppers.
European markets were mostly higher. Germany’s DAX rose 0.5% at 18,268.78 and the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.2% to 7,440.64. In London, the FTSE 100 shed 0.3% to 8,326.47 after U.K. retail sales rebounded from a 0.9% decline in June to a 0.5% increase in July, according to the Office for National Statistics.
Futures for the S&P 500 and for the Dow Jones Industrial Average both edged 0.1% higher.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 ended a week of gains with the index surging 3.6% to 38,062.67, setting the stage for its best week in four years. It rebounded from the large selloff last week, where the higher interest rate from the Bank of Japan made investors who had borrowed in yen and invested in dollar assets sell their holdings to cover the higher costs in the “carry trades” deals.
The yen went weaker against the greenback this week. The dollar fell slightly to 148.72 yen from 149.27 yen on Friday trading, but it was hovering around 146 yen during the previous week.
The Hang Seng in Hong Kong added 1.9% to 17,430.16, while the Shanghai Composite index edged 0.1% higher at 2,879.43.
Chinese central bank governor Pan Gongsheng said in an interview with Chinese state media on Thursday that it is developing new policies aimed at supporting economic growth in the second half of the year. These include accelerating improvements to the
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