Asian markets rose on Friday, following Thursday’s steep decline. The Nikkei ticked up .2% to 8514, whileOlympusshares were placed on a supervisory watch, an initial step towards a possible delisting. Korea’s Kospi rallied 2.8% as Samsung Electronics soared more than 5%, and Australian’s ASX 200 gained 1.2%. In greater China, the Hang Seng advanced .9% to 19137, and the Shanghai Composite rose fractionally.
In Europe, markets rallied on hopes Italy would soon resolve its political divide. The DAX soared 3.2%, the CAC40 gained 2.8%, and the FTSE climbed 1.9%. Italy’s MIB index surged 3.7% as the Italian Senate took steps towards implementing a new round of austerity measures.
European Markets End Volatile Week on an Upnote
US markets rallied for a second day, moving back into positive territory for the year. The Dow jumped 260 points to 12154, and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both advanced 2%.
In earnings news, Disney shares soared 6% after beating analyst expectations, and Nvidia climbed 3.5% on strong earnings.
Currencies
The Dollar retreated as currency traders moved back into “risk on” mode. The Australian Dollar staged an impressive rally, jumping 1.3% to 1.0280 after dropping to 1.0108 in the early morning. The Euro climbed 1.1% to 1.3750, and the Pound gained .8% to 1.6064. The Yen’s advance picked up steam, rising .6% to 77.18, and the Swiss Franc closed up .5% to 1.1099.
Economic Outlook
Consumer sentiment data from the University of Michigan exceeded expectations, climbing to 64.2 from last month’s 60.9.