Investing.com - Asian stocks rose on Thursday in wake of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's comments that the U.S. central bank will not rule out the use of monetary stimulus measures should the economy warrant.
During Asian trading on Thursday, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was up 0.54%, Australia's S&P/ASX200 was up 0.44%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index was up 0.18%.
In the U.S., the Federal Open Market Committee — the Fed's monetary policy body — concluded its April meeting announcing interest rates would remain unchanged at near zero percent, as while the economy continues to improve, headwinds are slowing recovery.
However, after the statement's release, Chairman Bernanke told a press conference that he would not rule out the use of quantitative easing should the economy merit such a move.
Under quantitative easing, the Fed buys bonds from banks, injecting those banks with liquidity to encourage hiring and price stability.
As a side effect, the dollar weakens and stock price rise, not only in the U.S. but worldwide.
The Fed has rolled out two such rounds of easing since the downturn, and talk the Fed would at least consider a third round if the economy hits a soft patch were waning until this week.
"We remain entirely prepared to take additional balance sheet actions if necessary to achieve our objectives," Bernanke said at the news conference.
"Those tools remain very much on the table and we will not hesitate to use them should the economy require that additional support."
Healthy corporate earnings worldwide pushed up Asian stocks as well.
Asian stock markets shrugged off weak orders for durable goods in the U.S. and let Bernanke's comments serve as the chief steering current.
In Hong Kong, the top gainers included China Unicom, up 2.69%, Hengan International, up 2.54%, and China Life, up 1.71%.
Top Australian gainers included Eldorado Gold, up 5.88%, One Steel Limited, up 4.31%, and Paladin Energy, up 3.49%.
European stock futures indicated a mixed to higher opening.
France's CAC 40 futures pointed to a gain of 0.08%, while Germany's DAX 30 futures signaled a gain of 0.05%. Meanwhile, in the U.K., the FTSE 100 futures indicated a loss of 0.01%.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were up 0.04% while the S&P 500 futures were up 0.07%.
Later Thursday, Japan will release its All Industries Activity Index, which measures the monthly change in overall production by all sectors of the Japanese economy
Japan is also due to publish official data on household spending, which accounts for a majority of overall economic activity, followed by inflation figures as well as preliminary data on industrial production and government data on retail sales.
Later, the Bank of Japan is to release its monetary policy statement, followed by the overnight call rate, an outlook report and a press conference.
During Asian trading on Thursday, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was up 0.54%, Australia's S&P/ASX200 was up 0.44%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index was up 0.18%.
In the U.S., the Federal Open Market Committee — the Fed's monetary policy body — concluded its April meeting announcing interest rates would remain unchanged at near zero percent, as while the economy continues to improve, headwinds are slowing recovery.
However, after the statement's release, Chairman Bernanke told a press conference that he would not rule out the use of quantitative easing should the economy merit such a move.
Under quantitative easing, the Fed buys bonds from banks, injecting those banks with liquidity to encourage hiring and price stability.
As a side effect, the dollar weakens and stock price rise, not only in the U.S. but worldwide.
The Fed has rolled out two such rounds of easing since the downturn, and talk the Fed would at least consider a third round if the economy hits a soft patch were waning until this week.
"We remain entirely prepared to take additional balance sheet actions if necessary to achieve our objectives," Bernanke said at the news conference.
"Those tools remain very much on the table and we will not hesitate to use them should the economy require that additional support."
Healthy corporate earnings worldwide pushed up Asian stocks as well.
Asian stock markets shrugged off weak orders for durable goods in the U.S. and let Bernanke's comments serve as the chief steering current.
In Hong Kong, the top gainers included China Unicom, up 2.69%, Hengan International, up 2.54%, and China Life, up 1.71%.
Top Australian gainers included Eldorado Gold, up 5.88%, One Steel Limited, up 4.31%, and Paladin Energy, up 3.49%.
European stock futures indicated a mixed to higher opening.
France's CAC 40 futures pointed to a gain of 0.08%, while Germany's DAX 30 futures signaled a gain of 0.05%. Meanwhile, in the U.K., the FTSE 100 futures indicated a loss of 0.01%.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were up 0.04% while the S&P 500 futures were up 0.07%.
Later Thursday, Japan will release its All Industries Activity Index, which measures the monthly change in overall production by all sectors of the Japanese economy
Japan is also due to publish official data on household spending, which accounts for a majority of overall economic activity, followed by inflation figures as well as preliminary data on industrial production and government data on retail sales.
Later, the Bank of Japan is to release its monetary policy statement, followed by the overnight call rate, an outlook report and a press conference.