After a broadly positive day on Wall Street, Asia rallied for a second successive day.
Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Seoul, Wellington, Taipei and Manila were all well up as traders focused on the likelihood of more Fed rate cuts.
The central bank’s closely watched Beige Book survey of US economic conditions pointed to a softer job market, echoing a string of recent weak data.
That provided extra ammunition for those eager for more rate cuts, including Trump.
The figures also come after Fed boss Jerome Powell this week warned that “the downside risks to employment appear to have risen”.
Still, economists at Bank of America remain cautious.
“As last week illustrates, risks are not all gone,” they wrote in a commentary. “In addition to the (now) obvious lack of a trade deal with China, uncertainties remain somewhat elevated for inflation (the impact of tariffs), growth (the weak job market) and the Trump administration policies (health care and drug pricing).”
Bets on US rate cuts, a weaker dollar and worries about the latest China-US flare-up have helped push gold to daily records and on Thursday, it hit a peak of US$4,234.70.
India’s rupee was also holding gains after its strongest rally since June, bouncing from near a record low, after the central bank stepped in.
“The Indian Rupee’s significant rally … the largest since late June, was primarily driven by central bank intervention, a softer dollar index, and supportive factors like lower crude oil prices and renewed foreign fund inflows,” Dilip Parmar, senior analyst at HDFC Securities, told AFP.
