Asian equities advance, but rally remains subdued

US stock markets were closed on Thursday and will close early on Friday in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday.

Asian markets closed mostly higher, supported by renewed hopes of a forthcoming US rate cut. Japan’s Nikkei 225 led regional gains, rising 1.23% as tech and export-focused stocks outperformed, helping the index push past the 50 000-point mark. The Shanghai Composite posted a modest gain of 0.18%, reflecting cautious optimism despite ongoing concerns over China’s economic outlook, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng showed little movement, ending at 25 928.99 as investors weighed mixed signals from the property sector and broader policy uncertainty. Although sentiment improved across Asia, the rally remained measured, with markets still attentive to the wider global backdrop.

European stocks ended the day mixed on Thursday, holding on to most of the three-session winning streak as expectations of another Fed rate cut continued to support sentiment across major markets. The Eurozone’s STOXX 50 finished broadly unchanged at 5 655, while the pan-European STOXX 600 edged up to 575. London’s FTSE closed slightly lower, dipping by 0.06%, and Germany’s DAX gained 0.21%.

Bank shares firmed, extending the positive run, with BNP Paribas up 1.50% and ING rising 0.50%. In contrast, tech stocks were volatile amid ongoing questions over sector valuations and competition between Nvidia’s GPUs and Alphabet’s TPUs. ASML and Prosus fell more than 2% each, while Infineon gained 2.60%.

Gold prices slipped on Thursday by 0.19%, trading at $4 155.87 an ounce, easing back from the near two-week high reached in the previous session as investors assessed the likelihood of a US interest rate cut in December. Although bullion has fallen about 5% since its record peak of $4 381.21 on 20 October, it has largely held above the key $4 000-an-ounce level. Silver and platinum rose by 10.11% and 2.41%, respectively. Brent crude oil increased slightly by 0.02% to trade at $63.14 per barrel.

South African equities ended lower, with the All Share down 1.16%, the JSE Top 40 falling 1.13%, and the JSE Industrial 25 decreasing by 1.51%. The rand weakened marginally against the dollar by 0.02%, but strengthened slightly, trading 0.05% higher against both the pound and the euro.