Shares in much of Asia rose on Thursday afternoon following an overnight surge in stocks on Wall Street.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 screamed higher 750.56 points, or 3.9%, to 20,077.62. The market has veered in and then out of bear market territory this week
Shares of Japan Display surged 5.9% on the back of a report that the iPhone XR comprised 32% of Apple’s iPhone sales in the U.S. in the 30 days after its release. Japan Display supplies the liquid crystal display panels used in the iPhone XR.
Also in Japan, Inpex advanced 4.3%, JXTG jumped 8.1% Fuji Oil gained 5% and Japan Petroleum Exploration soared 6.1%
Those moves came on the back of a strong rebound in oil prices on Wednesday, which saw both U.S. and international benchmark Brent crude post their largest one-day increase since Nov. 30, 2016, when OPEC signed a landmark agreement to cut production.
The Japanese yen, widely viewed as a safe-haven currency, traded at 111.01 U.S. after touching highs above 110 in the previous session.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index lost 172.5 points, or 0.7%, to 25,478.88
Hong Kong-listed shares of Sinopec fell around 4.2%, as of its final hour of trading, while its Shanghai-listed counterpart plunged 6.8% on the day following a report of two officials’ suspension (see below).
Australian markets picked up steam, with all sectors seeing gains.
Of note, the energy sector Down Under jumped 3.2%, with shares of oil-related companies advancing. Santos rose 2.7%, Woodside Petroleum gained 4.2% and Beach Energy climbed up by 1.1%.
The Australian dollar was at $0.7045 after seeing lows around the $0.703 handle yesterday.
CHINA
In Shanghai, the CSI 300 slid 11.52 points, or 0.4%, to 2,990.51
The moves came after state-owned oil company China Petroleum & Chemical, also known as Sinopec, reportedly suspended two top officials at its trading arm after the company suffered losses.
In other markets
In Taiwan, the Taiex index moved higher 162.57 points, or 1.7%, to 9,641.56
In Korea, the Kospi index inched higher 0.43 points at 2,028.44
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index gained 33.59 points, or 1.1%, to 3,044.74
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 added 60.01 points, or 0.7%, to 8,774.52
In Australia, the ASX 200 improved 103.74 points, or 1.9%, to 5,597.20
