FX.co ★ Asian Markets Track Global Markets Higher

Most Asian stock markets are trading higher following cues from the global markets. Rising optimism around the potential for interest rate cuts by major global central banks continues to fuel renewed interest in the markets. The European Central Bank, while maintaining its rates, lowered its annual inflation forecast. Jerome Powell, US Federal Chairman, informed Congress that interest rate cuts are anticipated to kick off this year.

The Australian stock market is experiencing significant growth, following global market trends, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 exceeding the 7,800 level with record highs. Majority of sectors, technology and finance inclusive are witnessing gains.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index is advancing by 77.40 points or 1.00 percent to 7,841.10, after touching a record high of 7,841.70 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 75.30 points or 0.94 percent to 8,102.00. Oil stocks such as Woodside Energy, Beach energy and Origin Energy are also performing well while others like Santos are experiencing a slight decline.

Tech stocks like WiseTech Global and Appen are advancing by more than 1 percent and almost 3 percent respectively. Meanwhile, Afterpay owner Block, Xero and Zip add some gains.

The big four banks, National Australia Bank, Westpac, Commonwealth Bank, and ANZ Banking, are also witnessing over 1 percent increase each. Gold miners like Evolution Mining, Northern Star Resources and Resolute Mining, are gaining more than 1 percent, almost 1 percent and up 0.5 percent respectively.

Elsewhere, share in Magmatic Resources surges by nearly 50 percent after potential stake acquisition by Fortescue Metals. The Australian dollar trades at $0.662.

Japanese stock market following the global market cues also recovers from a three-session loss streak. High gains are seen in index heavyweights like SoftBank Group and Uniqlo with advances of more than 2 percent and almost 1 percent respectively. Automakers like Honda and Toyota and the tech space are also experiencing slight gains.

Amid major exporters, Mitsubishi Electric, Canon, and Panasonic are seeing slight gains while Sony is marginally down. Osaka Gas notably surges by over 5 percent.

However, Keisei Electric Railway, Oriental Land, Tokyo Tatemono and Isuzu Motors show significant decline. The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry reports a 6.3 percent decrease household spending in January while the average monthly household income dips by 2.1 percent.On Friday, Japan's Ministry of Finance announced a current account surplus of 438.2 billion yen in January, greatly surpassing the expected deficit of 330 billion yen. This follows December's surplus of 744 billion yen. Annual imports reduced by 12.1 percent to 8.783 trillion yen, while exports experienced a 7.6 percent increase, reaching 7.340 trillion yen. Consequently, a trade deficit of 1.442 trillion yen was recorded.

Additionally, the capital account revealed a 100 million yen deficit, while the financial account boasted a surplus of 1.808 trillion yen. In the currency market, the U.S. dollar traded higher in the 147 yen-range on Friday.

Other markets in Asia such as South Korea experienced a 1.1 percent increase. Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia and Indonesia saw a rise between 0.1 and 0.8 percent in their markets, while New Zealand's market was also in an uplifted mood. In contrast, China's market declined by 0.3 percent.

On Wall Street, a sharp upward trend was noted during Thursday's trade, continuing Wednesday's bounce back. This success extended the earlier recorded pullbacks for the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 which hit record intraday peaks. The Nasdaq, heavily reliant on tech stocks, surged to 16,273.38 with a 241.83 point or 1.5 percent increase, slightly less than the previous Friday's record close. Concurrently, the S&P 500 set a new record closing high, gaining 52.60 points or 1.0 percent to reach 5,157.36. The Dow recorded a smaller gain of 130.30 points or 0.3 percent, closing at 38,791.35.

Meanwhile, the major European markets experienced an increase in trade. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index went up by a modest 0.2 percent, while both the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index moved up by 0.7 and 0.8 percent respectively.

Crude oil futures cooled down slightly on Thursday amid concerns about the demand outlook. The decline was somewhat tempered by a weaker greenback. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April reduced by $0.20 or 0.3 percent, concluding at $78.93 per barrel.