Stock market today: Asian shares extend gains after China-driven rally

NEW YORK (AP) — Asian shares pushed higher on Wednesday, again led by gains in China, after U.S. stocks climbed to more records in a quiet day of trading.

Chinese property developers surged after Beijing announced a flurry of measures aimed at reviving the housing market after a prolonged downturn. That news also boosted prices for oil, copper and other commodities.

Early Wednesday, U.S. futures were lower and oil prices also declined.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index jumped 1.8% to 19,346.68, after gaining more than 4% the day before. The Shanghai Composite index surged 1.8% to 2,913.47 following the announcement of concerted efforts to prop up the world’s second-largest economy.

“Chinese policymakers are throwing everything they’ve got to fight off deflation and breathe life into growth. Will it work long-term? Who knows,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary.

“But for now, Chinese stocks are gobbling up these stimulus efforts like they’re at an all-you-can-eat buffet,” he said.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 was up 0.3% at 38,068.22, while South Korea’s Kospi was flat, at 2,632.24.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.1% to 8,149.00.

On Tuesday, U.S. stocks drifted to more records, with the S&P 500 closing 0.3% higher at 5,732.93, the 41st all-time high for this year. Gains were tentative, though, and the index wavered up and down following a surprisingly weak report on U.S. consumer confidence.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.2% to its own record set the day before, closing at 42,208.22. The Nasdaq composite gained 0.6% to 18,074.52.

The Federal Reserve’s drastic turn last week in how it sets interest rate has buoyed markets. It’s now lowering rates to ease pressure on the U.S. economy after keeping them high for years in hopes of extinguishing high inflation.

Inflation has eased substantially from its peak two summers ago and the main worry occupying investors is that a slowdown in hiring by U.S. companies may worsen.

Moves to interest rates can take a notoriously long time to work their way fully through the economy, and the Federal Reserve kept its main interest rate at a two-decade high for more than a year before last week. It did cut by an unusually large amount in hopes of providing relief to the job market and economy.

A report released Tuesday showed U.S. households are feeling more worried about the job market. Their overall confidence level sank in September, according to the Conference Board, instead of rising like economists expected. That’s a big deal because spending by U.S. consumers is the heart of the U.S. economy.

One of Wall Street’s bigger winners was Smartsheet, which helps companies manage projects and automate workflows. It rose 6.5% after Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners agreed to buy it in an all-cash deal valued at $8.4 billion.

In the bond market, Treasury yields slipped following the weaker-than-expected report on consumer confidence. The 10-year yield fell to 3.73%, from 3.75% late Monday. The two-year yield, which more closely tracks expectations for the Fed’s upcoming moves, fell to 3.53% from 3.59% late Monday.

Lower interest rates can give the economy a boost by making it less expensive to borrow money to buy a car, house or things on credit cards. They also tend to raise prices for all kinds of investments.

Nvidia’s jump of 4% was the strongest force lifting the S&P 500 index Tuesday. The chip company’s stock had sunk 27% during the summer on worries that its price had shot too high in the frenzy around artificial-intelligence technology. But lower rates dampen that criticism by a bit, and Nvidia has been rallying back since early August.

In early Wednesday trading, U.S. benchmark crude oil was down 31 cents at $71.25 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, lost 24 cents to $74.23 per barrel.

The dollar rose to 143.40 Japanese yen from 143.23 yen. The euro climbed to $1.1200 from $1.1180.

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AP Business Writer Stan Choe contributed.