Asian shares were poised to track Wall Street’s tech fueled rally on Tuesday that saw the Nasdaq benchmark hit a fresh record while oil prices perked up on Chinese demand and hopes Sino-U.S. trade tensions were easing
“We saw some strength in tech again with semiconductors driving the boat,” said Thomas Hayes, chairman at Great Hill Capital. “We continue to see this push between growth and tech, between cyclical and value stocks. It’s a back-and-forth thing.”
Asian Shares
- Stocks The S&P 500 climbed 0.3% as of 4 p.m. New York time.
- The Stoxx Europe 600 Index advanced 0.3%.
- The MSCI Asia Pacific Index increased 0.4%. Currencies The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2%.
Currencies
- The euro climbed 0.2% to $1.1868.
- The Japanese yen appreciated 0.6% to 105.98 per dolla
Oil Prices
- Oil prices rose on hopes of a rebound in Chinese demand after two state-owned firms tentatively booked tankers to transport at least 20 million barrels of U.S. crude for August and September despite ongoing Sino-American tensions.
- Crude prices were also buoyed by reports that OPEC+ producers almost fully complied in July with their global production cut accord.
- Brent crude settled up 57 cents, or 1.3per cent, to US$45.87 a barrel, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained 88 cents, or 2.1 per cent, to US$42.41 a barrel.
Gold Price
- Safe haven gold closed higher after Berkshire Hathaway also disclosed a stake in Toronto-based Barrick Gold Corp, one of the world’s largest mining companies.
- Spot gold added 2.1per cent to US$1,984.13 an ounce. U.S. gold futures gained 2.01per cent to US$1,975.90 an ounce.
