Investing.com - Asian stocks rose in morning trade on Thursday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumping more than 3.5% after Wall Street recovered from the steep losses suffered in the previous session and recorded the biggest rally since 2009.
The gain in U.S. stocks came after White House’s economic adviser Kevin Hassett said Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's job was not in jeopardy, easing some market worries about his future.
U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticised the Fed over the past few days, calling it "the only problem our economy has" in a tweet. Trump also said on Tuesday that the Fed was "raising interest rates too fast because they think the economy is so good."
The central bank has hiked overnight rates four times this year.
In Asia, China’s Shanghai Composite and the Shenzhen Component both gained 0.6% by 8:59 PM ET (01:59 GMT). Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was also up 0.5%.
Citing two people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reported that a U.S. government delegation would hold trade talks with Chinese officials in the week of Jan. 7.
Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Jeffrey Gerrish will lead the Trump administration’s team, which will also include Treasury Under Secretary for International Affairs David Malpass, Bloomberg said.
Elsewhere, South Korea’s KOSPI traded 0.4% higher, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 advanced 1.6%.