Banks lift Japan, Australian shares
Banks lift Japan, Australian shares
Tokyo: Asian shares were mixed on Tuesday, with a strong showing by banks pushing Japanese and Australian stock markets higher.
The Nikkei 225 stock average rose 0.4% to 10,633.81 a day after closing at a nine-month high. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.2% to 4,879.90.
Meanwhile, benchmarks in Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea were slightly lower. Korean tech blue chips lost ground.
In New York on Monday, the Dow Jones industrial average rose for the sixth straight day in its longest winning streak since November, The index climbed 69.48 points, or 0.6%, to 12,161.63.
The broader Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 8.18, or 0.6%, to 1,319.05. Financial companies posted the largest gain of any of the 10 company groups that make up the S&P index.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite gained 14.69, or 0.5%, to 2,783.99.
In currencies, the dollar rose to ¥82.31 from ¥82.29 late Monday. The euro stood at $1.3589 from $1.3591.
Benchmark crude for March delivery was up 8 cents at $87.56 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $1.55 to settle at $87.48 Monday as investors shifted their focus from unrest in Egypt to the US economy.
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