Stock Market Today: Asian Shares Rise on Fed Rate Hopes

Hong Kong, Nov 3 (AP) Asian shares advanced on Friday after Wall Street roared higher on bets that market-rattling interest rate hikes are coming to an end.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 2.6 per cent to 17,680.01, while the Shanghai Composite gained 0.7 per cent to 3,026.32. Tokyo markets were closed for a holiday.

In China, a services industry survey showed a slight improvement in October, though retail sales hit its lowest level in 10 months. Similar surveys for the manufacturing sector released early this week showed more sluggish market conditions overall.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 1.1 per cent to 6,978.20. South Korea's Kospi surged 1.1 per cent to 2,368.34. India's Sensex was 0.6 per cent higher and Bangkok's SET rose 1.4 per cent.

Hopes that the Federal Reserve may finally be done with raising rates after it opted to keep its benchmark rate unchanged pushed shares higher around the world on Thursday.

The Fed has jacked up rates furiously since early last year to try to slow the economy and starve high inflation of its fuel.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 leaped 1.9 per cent Thursday to 4,317.78 for its fourth straight winning day. It's already up 4.9 per cent this week and on pace for its best week in nearly a year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 1.7 per cent to 33,838,08, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.8 per cent to 13,294.19.

Longer-term Treasury yields fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury dropped to 4.66 per cent on early Friday from 4.67 per cent and from more than 5 per cent last week, when it reached its highest level since 2007.

Lower yields provide oxygen across financial markets. They make it easier for businesses and households to get loans, encourage investors to pay higher prices for stocks and reduce the pressure on the entire financial system.

However, Fed chair Jerome Powell warned after the policy announcement Wednesday that if the 10-year yield ends up falling too far and reigniting pressure on inflation, the central bank might end up needing to hike rates again.

One preliminary report Thursday said US businesses produced more stuff during the summer than the number of hours worked increased, indicating they became more efficient. Such productivity gains could ease pressure on inflation while helping the economy to grow.

A separate report said slightly more US workers applied for unemployment benefits last week than expected. That's bad news for those workers, but a cooler job market also could relieve price pressures.

Big US companies, meanwhile, continue to report better profits for the summer than analysts expected.

Eli Lilly's stock rose 4.7 per cent after the drug maker said it benefited from soaring sales for its blockbuster diabetes treatment, Mounjaro, which is widely used for weight loss.

Starbucks jumped 9.5 per cent after reporting stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than Wall Street forecast.

Also on Thursday, Cedar Fair and Six Flags said they'll merge to create an expansive amusement park operator with operations spread across 17 US states and three countries. Their stocks were mixed, but both remain up more than 7 per cent this week after rumours of the deal spread.

On the losing end of Wall Street was Moderna, which sank 6.5 per cent after reporting a much worse loss for the latest quarter than analysts expected.

More swings could be coming for Wall Street. The latest monthly update on the US jobs market, due later Friday, is expected to show a slowdown in hiring for October.

Oil prices were steady after experiencing wild swings this week. A barrel of benchmark US oil rose 42 cents to USD 82.88 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It added 90 cents on Thursday. Brent crude, the international standard, gained 39 cents to USD 87.24 per barrel.

In currency trading, the US dollar fell to 150.33 Japanese yen from 150.44 yen. The euro cost USD 1.0629, up from USD 1.0620 late Thursday. (AP)