Asian stocks extended their climb on Wednesday, marking a third consecutive day of gains and reaching their highest point in two weeks. The dollar displayed uncertainty as lackluster U.S. labor data strengthened expectations that the Federal Reserve might halt its interest rate hikes.
The Asia-Pacific shares index, excluding Japan, surged by as much as 1%, touching its peak since August 14th before moderating to a 0.53% gain. Despite this recent uptrend, the index has experienced a 6% decline thus far in August, poised for its weakest monthly performance since February.
Anticipations of continued positive sentiment extended to Europe as well, with Eurostoxx 50 futures climbing by 0.39%, German DAX futures up by 0.29%, and FTSE futures rising by 0.31%.
The day ahead holds significance with inflation reports from Germany and Spain, which are expected to impact investors’ risk sentiment, thus influencing the trajectory of euro zone consumer price data scheduled for Thursday.
Recent reports indicated Wall Street concluded the previous session with a robust increase, paralleled by a drop in Treasury yields to three-week lows. The decline was attributed to data revealing that U.S. job openings in July reached their lowest level in almost 2.5 years, signaling a reduction in labor market pressures, as reported by Reuters.
The current positive outlook is expected to persist into the European markets, while global attention remains focused on economic indicators and developments, particularly within the Eurozone.
