Asia-Pacific markets trade higher, tracking Wall Street gains, after Lunar New Year break

Asia-Pacific markets trade higher, tracking Wall Street gains, after Lunar New Year break


An aerial view of Singapore’s skyline.

Tong Thi Viet Phuong | Moment | Getty Images

Asia-Pacific markets traded higher Thursday, tracking gains on Wall Street, with several bourses in the region returning from the Lunar New Year holiday.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.1% in early trade.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 added 0.52%, while the Topix rose 0.39%. South Korea’s Kospi jumped 2.97% and the small-cap Kosdaq advanced 0.59%.

Hong Kong and mainland China markets remain closed for the Lunar New Year break.

Overnight in the U.S., the S&P 500 moved higher, supported by gains in key technology names, as traders weighed the release of the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s most recent policy meeting.

The broad-based index climbed 0.56% to end at 6,881.31, while the Nasdaq Composite added 0.78% to settle at 22,753.63. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.26% to close at 49,662.66.

—CNBC’s Sean Conlon and Pia Singh contributed to this report.



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