NEW YORK: Asian shares were set to rise on Thursday ahead of the Christmas break, as global investors cheered a potential Brexit deal and economic recovery prospects, largely ignoring U.S. President Donald Trump's threat to veto a long-awaited COVID aid package.
"The framework for a Brexit trade deal gave investors the green light to start buying everything in Europe," said Edward Moya, Senior Market Analyst, at OANDA in New York. MSCI's gauge of global stocks was up 0.02per cent, having given back some earlier gains in thin holiday trading.Wall Street ended mostly higher, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing up 0.38per cent and the S&P 500 edging 0.07per cent higher. The Nasdaq Composite declined 0.29per cent.