Asia Markets Build On Global Rally With ECB In Focus

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Asia markets build on global rally with ECB in focus

HONG KONG, Dec 8, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 08th Dec, 2016 ) - A global stocks rally extended into Asia on Thursday, with investors betting the European Central Bank will prolong its stimulus programme, while the positive mood helped lift riskier currencies.

With the economic outlook in Europe still looking fragile and political uncertainty gripping world markets, analysts expect the ECB will wind up its latest policy meeting with a pledge to continue its cash-pumping measures for another six months.

The speculation has helped refresh a waning global assets rally that began after Donald Trump's US election win, which traders predict will usher in a time of huge spending, tax cutting and deregulation.

Such positive sentiment has propelled the Dow on Wall Street to successive records -- and put it on course to hit 20,000 for the first time -- while the S&P 500 also clocked up an all-time high Wednesday.

Hong Kong added 0.5 percent in the afternoon and Tokyo ended 1.5 percent up. Seoul surged two percent, while Sydney Taipei and Manila piled on more than one percent. However, Shanghai dipped 0.2 percent despite Chinese trade data showing a forecast-beating jump in imports and exports that indicate the world's number two economy continues to stabilise.

"The market is optimistic that the ECB will extend its quantitative easing programme at current levels for a further six months," Sharon Zollner, a senior economist in Auckland at ANZ Bank New Zealand, told Bloomberg news.