---
title: "Asia follows Wall Street higher in risk-on rally: markets wrap"
description: "Stocks in Asia rose after US shares climbed and Treasuries sold off as investors weighed fresh data that indicated further Federal Reserve tightening ahead."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "International Finance"
author: "Bloomberg"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/bloomberg/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-02-16-asia-follows-wall-street-higher-in-risk-on-rally-markets-wrap/"
published: "2023-02-16T06:00:07"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 404
---

# Asia follows Wall Street higher in risk-on rally: markets wrap

> Stocks in Asia rose after US shares climbed and Treasuries sold off as investors weighed fresh data that indicated further Federal Reserve tightening ahead.

By Bloomberg · Published 16 February 2023, 08:00 SAST

## Key points
- Equities in Asia-Pacific rose as investors shrugged off strong US economic data, with Hong Kong shares advancing to break a four-day losing streak. The Australian dollar was flat following a surprise increase in the jobless rate and US equity futures gained. The market rally also drove some of the most speculative corners higher, such as non-profitable tech companies and Bitcoin. Meanwhile, oil prices edged up after a decline on Wednesday and Cisco Systems shares jumped 10% after giving an upbeat revenue prediction. Devon Energy fell more than 10% due to missing 4Q earnings estimates. These moves suggest that corporate tech spending is holding up better than expected.
- Equities in Australia, South Korea, Japan and China gained ground while futures for US benchmarks rose.
- The Australian dollar was flat after a surprise rise in the jobless rate while New Zealand yields rose and US Treasury yields were flat.
- US retail sales jumped by the most in almost two years and homebuilder sentiment rose in February by the most since mid-2020.
- Cisco Systems shares rose 10% after giving an upbeat revenue prediction, while Devon Energy fell 10% after fourth-quarter earnings missed estimates.

## Content

Equities in Australia, South Korea, Japan and China gained ground. Hong Kong shares advanced to snap a four-day run of declines as JD.com, Nio and Tencent rose.

Equity futures for US benchmarks also gained after the S&P 500 climbed 0.3% to close at its session high on Wednesday while the Nasdaq 100 ended the day 0.8% higher.

The Australian dollar was flat after initially tumbling on a surprise rise in the [jobless rate](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-02-16/australian-unemployment-unexpectedly-jumps-to-3-7-yields-drop), indicating higher interest rates are taking a toll on the economy. The news pared an advance in government bond yields. New Zealand yields rose while benchmark 10-year Treasury yields were flat after increasing six basis points on Wednesday. The dollar was steady and the yen strengthened.

The gains for US stocks came as investors shrugged off robust economic data that would compel a hawkish Fed response. US retail sales in January [jumped](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-02-15/us-retail-sales-jump-by-most-in-nearly-two-years-in-broad-gain) by the most in almost two years and homebuilder sentiment [rose](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-02-15/us-homebuilder-sentiment-increases-by-most-since-mid-2020) in February by the most since mid-2020.

The data follows a hotter-than-expected inflation print on Tuesday and comes ahead of US employment data to be released on Thursday that is expected to show an uptick in jobless claims.

The market “is telling us maybe we can keep going as long as inflation is coming down overall and growth is solid”, Quincy Krosby, chief global strategist for LPL Financial, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television.

The rally in risk assets helped propel some of the most speculative corners of the market. A Goldman Sachs Group benchmark of non-profitable tech companies rose 4.4% and is up almost 30% this year. Bitcoin rose further after jumping 8.7% on Wednesday, the most in three months, to reach the highest level since August.

“Everybody is trying to figure out whether this is going to be a once-in-a-lifetime soft landing or if it’s just taking longer before we get a panic recession,” Jerry Braakman, chief investment officer of First American Trust, said in an interview. “That’s why you’re seeing a lot of divergence between bulls and bears.”

Oil futures climbed slightly following a decline on Wednesday after EIA reported that crude inventories rose over 16 million barrels last week.

Cisco Systems shares rose as much as 10% in late trading after it gave an [upbeat](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-02-15/cisco-forecast-suggests-corporate-tech-spending-is-holding-up) revenue prediction that suggested that spending on tech infrastructure is holding up better than expected. Devon Energy fell more than 10% after fourth-quarter earnings missed estimates. **BM/DM**