BANGKOK (AP) — Asian shares have mostly gained after China’s central bank released plans for supporting the stock market through share repurchases by corporations and major shareholders.
Beijing also reported that the Chinese economy slowed further within the last quarter, which spurred expectations the federal government will ramp up its latest stimulus efforts. The world’s second-largest economy expanded at a 4.6% annual pace in July-September, down barely from 4.7% within the previous quarter.
Growth thus far this 12 months has averaged to 4.8%, below the official goal of about 5%, as weakness within the property market has continued to weigh on demand.
Meanwhile, the central bank issued guidelines for state banks to offer loans to corporations and major shareholders for stock repurchases as a part of an effort to stabilize China’s share markets, which have languished in recent times.
The loans, which may be made only by 21 designated financial institutions, may have a maximum rate of interest of two.25%, the People’s Bank of China said in a press release that underscored plans for strict oversight of the hassle to support the markets.
The news helped drive a rally in Shanghai, where the Composite index was up 2.1% at 3,232.14. The benchmark for the smaller market within the southern city of Shenzhen jumped 3.2%.
Shanghai’s benchmark has gained 9% up to now three months, though it had surged much higher last month with the discharge of latest measures to counter the slowdown, before falling back as investors registered their disappointment over a scarcity of massive government spending initiatives.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 2.2% to twenty,519.78.
Also Friday, China’s large state-run banks cut their deposit rates, to 0.1% from 0.15% for demand deposits and to 1.1% from 1.35% for long term deposits.
Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 edged 0.2% higher to 38,798.48 and the Kospi in Seoul shed 0.6% to 2,594.40. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gave up 0.9% to eight,283.20.
The Taiex in Taiwan gained 1.9% and the SET in Bangkok was up 0.2%. India’s Sensex slipped 0.2%.
On Thursday, U.S. stocks drifted around their record heights Thursday following the newest signals that the U.S. economy continues to hum.
The S&P 500 finished virtually unchanged at 5,841.47 after flirting with its all-time high for much of the day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.4% to 43,239.05, besting its own record set the day before. The Nasdaq composite added lower than 0.1% to 18,373.61.
Nvidia and other corporations within the chip industry were a number of the market’s strongest after global heavyweight Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. reported larger profit for the newest quarter than analysts expected.
But a 1.4% slide for Google’s parent company, Alphabet, and a ten.6% tumble for Elevance Health helped keep stock indexes in check. Elevance reported weaker profit for the newest quarter than expected.
CSX fell 6.7% after falling wanting analysts’ profit expectations for the newest quarter. The railroad also expects only modest volume growth the remaining of the 12 months because the Southeast rebuilds after two major hurricanes.
Within the bond market, Treasury yields rose following the newest encouraging reports on the U.S. economy.
U.S. retailers made more in sales in September than in August, and underlying growth trends throughout the data were higher than economists expected.
A separate report, meanwhile, said fewer U.S. staff applied for unemployment advantages last week, a signal that layoffs nationwide are relatively low and aren’t damaging the job market.
Such data bolster the hope that the economy could make an ideal escape from the worst inflation in generations, one which ends and not using a recession that many investors had seen as nearly inevitable. And with the Federal Reserve now cutting rates of interest to maintain the economy humming, the expectation amongst optimists is that stocks can rise even further.
Critics, meanwhile, are warning that stock prices look too expensive given how much faster they’ve climbed than corporate profits.
The European Central Bank on Thursday cut its major rate of interest by 1 / 4 of a percentage point. That helped send stock indexes higher by 1.2% in France and 0.8% in Germany.
In other dealings early Friday, U.S. benchmark crude oil gained 25 cents to $70.92 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, was 20 cents higher at $74.65 per barrel.
The dollar fell to 149.85 Japanese yen from 150.21 yen. The euro rose to $1.0843 from $1.0827.
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AP Business Writers Stan Choe and Matt Ott contributed.