SINGAPORE - Asian equity markets ground higher on Thursday as investors tried to look past gathering US-China tension and renewed coronavirus lockdowns to upcoming company earnings, hoping that global stimulus efforts will yield upbeat outlooks.
China was hit first and so is emerging first from the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, fiscal stimulus, heavy government borrowing driving up bond yields, and a state-media editorial extolling strong fundamentals have stoked euphoria. China's blue-chip index rose for an eighth straight session in early trade on Thursday, gaining 0.6 per cent to touch a five-year high. The Shanghai Composite was up by the same margin and at its highest level since early 2018.
Restraint was more evident in other asset classes as investors kept a wary eye on surging coronavirus cases and increasing tension between China and its trading partners, while waiting for US jobs figures at 1230 GMT and next week's earnings. Five million Australians are under strict stay-at-home rules in the country's second largest city of Melbourne.
"Earnings season is upon us, and we really want to see what it looks like," said Jun Bei Liu, a portfolio manager at Australia's Tribeca Investment Partners. The focus will be on the outlook as well as on understanding how deeply stimulus efforts have flowed through the real economy, she said.
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