BEIJING: Asian stock markets rose Monday after the chief US central banker expressed optimism the the American economy might start to recover this year from the coronavirus pandemic.That came despite Japan’s announcement its economy contracted in the first quarter and the Trump administration’s decision to step up a technology conflict with Beijing by tightening restrictions on Chinese tech giant Huawei.
The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.2% to 2,874.89 and Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 gained 0.3% to 20,105.84. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong advanced 0.1% to 23,819.26. That appeared to encourage investors who are looking for signs of when global economies might return to normal. Powell and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin are due to appear Thursday before a Senate panel to report on recovery efforts.
That"sharp fall” suggests there is"much worse to come” in the current quarter, Tom Learmouth of Capital Economics said in a report.The S&P 500 index rose 11.20 points to 2,863.70. It ended down 2.3% for the week. Washington said non-U.S. companies that make processor chips for Huawei must obtain permission to use American technology, a move that threatens to disrupt sales. Huawei warned earlier that additional U.S. sanctions on the company might trigger Chinese government retaliation against American enterprises.