Asia Pacific stocks rise as investors await US election results

(dpa/NAN)

Shares in Asia Pacific rose modestly on Wednesday as US President Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden were locked in a fierce battle for the White House.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average gained 1.72 per cent to end at 23,695.23 after rising as much as 2.16 per cent in the morning.

The broader Topix index was up 1.2 per cent to 1,627.25 on the day.

Japanese financial markets were closed on Tuesday for a public holiday.

South Korea’s benchmark Kospi Index climbed 0.6 per cent to close at 2,357.32 after rising 1.88 per cent on Tuesday.

Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX200 index closed down 0.07 per cent and the broader All Ordinaries index edged up 0.04 per cent on the day.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index added 0.38 per cent after gaining almost 2 per cent on the previous day while China’s Shanghai Composite Index was up 0.22 per cent.

On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 2.06 per cent, the S&P 500 index closed up 1.78 per cent and the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 1.85 per cent.

Democrat Biden maintained a steady lead over incumbent Trump in the last surveys ahead of the election day.

Some aspects of Biden’s policy proposals would typically be seen as a negative for stock markets in the short term.

Such as his plan to raise some taxes, while he would favour a larger stimulus package to bolster the pandemic-battered economy.

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