On Monday morning (29 Apr, 9:26 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), major indices in Asia Pacific increased as investors kept their eyes on the US Federal Reserve’s meeting coming this week. Japan’s stock markets are closed for a public holiday, while the yen weakened to 160 against the US dollar, the weakest level since 1990, after the BOJ held its interest rates last Friday.
South Korea’s KOSPI gained 0.83% to 2,678.34, and Australia’s ASX 200 climbed by 0.53% to 7,615.8.
As for stocks in China, Shanghai’s SSEC edged up by 0.51% to 3,104.3. Shenzhen’s SZI jumped by 1.45% to 9,601.25, and Hong Kong’s HSI increased by 1% to 17,827.
Meanwhile, the US stock markets edged up on Friday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) rose by 0.4% to 38,239.66. NASDAQ jumped 2.03% to 15,927.9, and S&P 500 grew by 1.02% to 5,099.96. VIX slumped by 2.21% to 15.03.
As for commodities, oil prices settled higher on Friday as tensions in the Middle East put some pressure on crude supply, while a strong US dollar and stronger-than-expected inflation data from the US diminished chances for rate cuts and gave oil prices a ceiling. Brent rose 49 cents or 0.55% to $89.50 per barrel, and the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) grew 28 cents or 0.34% to $83.85 a barrel.
This morning, Brent decreased 89 cents or 0.99% to $88.61 a barrel, and the WTI lost 78 cents or 0.93% to $83.07 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures slid by 0.34% to $2,339.3 per Troy ounce.
