Global stock markets regained ground on Friday, taking their momentum from Thursday’s surge on Wall Street, meaning equities have now clawed back the bulk of their losses from Monday’s heavy sell-off. A drop in US unemployment claims on Thursday helped to soothe fears over an imminent economic slowdown and gave US equities their strongest gain since 2022. That led to a moderate rebound in Asia. Japan’s Topix closed 1 per cent higher, while South Korea’s Kospi and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 1.
“Volatility is still high, so we may continue to see market fluctuations , said Naoya Fuji, equity strategist at Nomura, who emphasised that strong corporate earnings, share buybacks and better corporate governance had helped the Japanese market recover from Monday’s shock sell-off. Friday’s relative calm followed data showing that new US applications for unemployment aid — seen as a proxy for job cuts — had fallen to their lowest level in a month.