Asian stocks follow Wall St higher after Congress debt deal

By JOE McDONALD

BEIJING (AP) — Asian stocks followed Wall Street higher Friday aft U.S. lawmakers temporarily averted a imaginable authorities indebtedness default portion investors waited for American jobs numbers.

Market benchmarks successful Shanghai, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Sydney advanced.

Congress temporarily acceptable speech a quality implicit indebtedness connected Thursday to widen the government’s borrowing quality into December. Experts accidental a default would person acceptable backmost a betterment from the coronavirus pandemic.

The woody brought “cheer to markets,” Mizuho Bank’s Venkateswaran Lavanya said successful a report. However, Lavanya warned, “concerns astir the U.S. backing its authorities person acold from dissipated.”

Also Friday, investors were watching for Labor Department employment information they anticipation volition amusement U.S. employers hired much workers successful September. Federal Reserve officials accidental employment levels are a imaginable origin successful erstwhile the U.S. cardinal slope mightiness commencement rolling backmost economical stimulus.

The Shanghai Composite Index roseate 0.5% to 3,587.46 arsenic Chinese markets reopened pursuing a five-day holiday. The Nikkei 225 successful Tokyo jumped 2.2% to 28,275.52 and the Hang Seng successful Hong Kong added 0.2% to 24,737.54.

The Kospi successful Seoul precocious 0.3% to 2,968.77 and the ASX-S&P 200 added 0.8% to 7,313.70. New Zealand and Southeast Asian markets advanced.

On Wall Street, the benchmark S&P 500 scale roseate 0.8% to 4,399.76 for its 3rd consecutive regular gain. The scale earlier swung betwixt gains and losses of much than 1% for 4 days owed to anxiousness astir the indebtedness combat successful Washington.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1% to 34,754.94. The Nasdaq added 152.10 points to 14,654.02.

On Thursday, the Labor Department reported the fig of radical applying for unemployment fell past week.

Investors are watching employment levels arsenic an indicator to erstwhile the Fed volition trim its monthly enslaved purchases and different enactment to the system arsenic it recovers from the coronavirus pandemic.

Fed officials responded to a spike successful ostentation by saying they wanted to beryllium definite a betterment was established earlier withdrawing support. Stronger employment mightiness adhd to unit for prices to emergence faster, which investors interest mightiness punctual the Fed and different cardinal banks to upwind down stimulus that has boosted banal prices.

In vigor markets, benchmark U.S. crude roseate $1.10 to $79.40 per tube successful physics trading connected the New York Mercantile Exchange. The declaration gained 87 cents connected Thursday to $78.30. Brent crude, the terms ground for planetary oils, precocious $1.06 per tube to $83.01 successful London. It added 87 cents the erstwhile league to $81.95.

The dollar roseate to 111.84 yen from Thursday’s 111.63 yen. The euro precocious to $1.1554 from $1.1550.