- Hong Kong stocks resume rally, oil dips after Middle East-fuelled surge
- Crude stable after Israel-Iran surge, Hong Kong stocks resume gains
- Hera spacecraft to probe asteroid deflected by defence test
- US dockworkers to head back to work after tentative deal
- After Helene's destruction, North Carolina starts to rebuild
- Dockers end three-day strike at Montreal port
- What next for OpenAI after $157 billion bonanza?
- Israel-Hamas war causes 86-percent dive in Gaza GDP: IMF
- Milan's Morata moves house after Inter-fan town mayor 'violates' privacy
- 'Devastating' storm hits Augusta National but Masters will go on
- Relief in Brazil, Asia over delay to EU deforestation rules
- Oil prices jump, stocks fall on Middle East tensions
- Biden says 'discussing' possible Israeli strikes on Iran oil facilities
- Oil prices rise, stocks fall on Middle East tensions
- Oil rallies, stocks mostly retreat on Middle East tensions
- Phasing out teen smoking could save 1.2 mn lives: study
- 'Welcome relief': Asia producers hail EU deforestation law delay
- Japan PM slated to announce plans for 'happiness index'
- Turkish inflation falls less than expected in September at 49.4%
- Easing inflation lifts profit at UK supermarket Tesco
- Skiing calls on UN climate science to combat melting future
- China wine industry looks to breed climate resilience
- Tokyo rallies on weak yen, Hong Kong drops after surge
- Dutch airline KLM unveils 'firm' cost-cutting measures
- Carpe diem: the Costa Rican women turning fish into fashion
- Senegal looks to aquaculture as fish stocks dwindle
- Will AI one day win a Nobel Prize?
- Climate change, economics muddy West's drive to curb Chinese EVs
- Argentina's Milei vetoes university budget after huge protests
- TotalEnergies plans to grow oil and gas production until 2030
- 2024 Nobels offer glimmer of hope as global crises mount
- Tokyo rallies on weak yen, Hong Kong reverses after surge
- Tunisia readies for vote as incumbent Saied eyes victory
- High childcare costs in US weigh on women's employment
- US voters seek help with crushing childcare costs
- Taiwan shuts down for second day as Typhoon Krathon to land
- Supercharged storms: how climate change amplifies cyclones
- Biden official urges talks as US port strike enters second day
- Huge protests in Argentina over public university cuts
- Rally in oil prices loses steam on mixed day for global stocks
- South America treated to rare 'ring of fire' eclipse
- Biden official says port strike deal not as far as parties think
- Mexico's new president offers apology for 1968 student massacre
- Historic funding round values OpenAI at $157 billion
- Mixed US car sales in Q3 as industry hopes for post-election bounce
- Thunderstorms are a 'boiling pot' of gamma rays, scientists find
- Scientists unlock secret of 'Girl With Pearl Earring'
- Dolphins flash friendly grins when they're ready to play
- Facing backlash, EU moves to delay deforestation rules
- US private sector adds more jobs than expected in September: ADP
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Asian markets track post-Fed surge on Wall St, but caution urged
Asian markets rose Thursday following a surge on Wall Street fuelled by hopes that the Federal Reserve could slow its pace of inflation-fighting interest rate hikes.
The dollar also struggled to bounce back from a sell-off -- sitting at a three-week low against the yen -- that came in response to comments by bank chief Jerome Powell suggesting its next super-sized increase could be its last.
However, analysts cautioned that the initial joy, which sent New York's three main indexes soaring, could be short-lived as the global economy continued to face several headwinds and inflation would not likely come down quickly.
As expected, the Fed lifted borrowing costs 75 basis points to a range of 2.25-2.5 percent, close to the neutral level it considers neither stimulating nor slowing economic growth.
Forecasts have rates going as high as 3.8 percent in 2023 as the bank tries to control runaway inflation.
There is a growing concern that the sharp rise in rates is bearing down on the world's top economy and could send it into recession.
But in his post-meeting comments, Powell said he did not consider that was the case, because "there are too many areas of the economy that are performing too well". He did, however, note growth was slowing.
He added that officials would not give any guidance on their next move, instead taking each decision on a meeting-to-meeting basis.
And while he said another "unusually large increase could be appropriate" in September, markets took heart from the suggestion that the bank was ready to take its foot off the gas towards the end of the year.
On Wall Street, the Dow and S&P rallied and the Nasdaq soared more than four percent -- its best one-day rise since late 2020 -- as tech firms caught a wave of optimism. The sector is more susceptible to higher rates.
And Asia followed suit, though with more muted gains.
Hong Kong was up after bouncing from initial losses as the city's de facto central bank followed the Fed in lifting rates owing to its currency peg.
Shanghai, Tokyo, Sydney, Seoul, Singapore, Taipei, Manila, Jakarta and Wellington were also well in the green.
The prospect of a slower pace of rate hikes weighed on the dollar against most other currencies, and on Thursday hit its lowest level against the yen since July 6.
However, there was a warning that the positive mood likely will not last.
"This market move is the victory of hope over experience," Jeffrey Rosenberg, at BlackRock Inc, told Bloomberg Television. "I'd be a little bit cautious here."
And Citigroup's Andrew Hollenhorst and Veronica Clark added that traders appeared to be misjudging Powell's remarks.
"We read Chair Powell's press conference as more hawkish than the market's interpretation," they said, adding that inflation readings excluding food and energy will "push the Fed to hike more aggressively than they or markets anticipate".
All eyes are now on the release of second-quarter growth data later Thursday. After a 1.6 percent contraction in the previous three months, another negative reading would put the economy into a technical recession.
An expected phone call between Joe Biden and China's Xi Jinping will also be high on the agenda for investors as the world's superpowers try to navigate a period of rising tensions. Anything on US tariffs and Taiwan will be among the main areas of focus.
- Key figures at around 0230 GMT -
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.3 percent at 27,804.21 (break)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.4 percent at 20,75001
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.7 percent at 3,299.89
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0198 from $1.0201 late Wednesday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2157 from $1.2151
Euro/pound: DOWN at 83.39 pence from 83.85 pence
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 135.52 yen from 136.51 yen
West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.6 percent at $98.80 per barrel
Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.2 percent at $108.00 per barrel
New York - Dow: UP 1.4 percent at 32,197.59 (close)
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.6 percent at 7,348.23 (close)
A.Levy--CPN