Forexpros – Solid earnings out of the U.S., including an on-year 94% gain in Apple Computers profits, sent Asian stocks rising Wednesday.
During Asian trading on Tuesday, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was down 0.09%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index was up 0.80%.
Australian markets were closed on holiday.
Earnings season is upon the markets, giving investors a chance to downplay ongoing headlines of European debt crises and whether or not the U.S. will intervene in a plodding U.S. recovery.
U.S. tech bellwether Apple surprised the street by positing revenue of USD39.2 billion in the most recent quarter, up 59% on year, while net profits hit USD11.6 billion, or USD12.30 per share, up 94% from USD6 billion, or USD6.40 a share during the same period a year earlier.
Both figures exceeded expectations and fueled demand for stocks worldwide.
Other earnings surprised on the upside as well, including AT&T and 3M.
Investors also viewed mixed U.S. housing data in a positive light and bought stocks as well.
The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller house price index fell at an annualized rate of 3.5% in February from a year earlier, slightly worse than expectations for a 3.4% decline.
New home sales in the U.S., meanwhile, fell by 7.1% to a seasonally adjusted 328,000 units in March, slightly better than expectations for a reading of 320,000.
Asian stock markets shrugged off U.S. consumer confidence numbers.
The Conference Board reported that its consumer confidence index fell to 69.2 in April from a downwardly revised reading of 69.5 in March and further below a 12-month high in February.
Analysts were hoping the index would rise to 69.7 in April.
Rising consumer confidence figures out of South Korean boosted Asian shares as well.
In Hong Kong, the top gainers included China Overseas, up 1.96%, Wharf Holdings, up 1.44%, and China Merchant Holdings, up 1.13%.
Top Hong Kong decliners included Tencent, down 2.55%, Bank of East Asia, down 1.31%, and HKEx, down 1.29%.
European stock futures indicated a higher opening.
France’s CAC 40 futures pointed to a gain of 0.27%, while Germany’s DAX 30 futures also signaled a gain of 0.27%. Meanwhile, in the U.K., the FTSE 100 futures indicated a gain of 0.10%.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were up 0.19% while the S&P 500 futures were up 0.30%.
The U.S. will release government data on durable goods orders, a leading indicator of production, and crude oil stockpiles.
The Federal Reserve will announce its decision on benchmark interest rates and release its rate statement.
Also Wednesday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is scheduled to speak.
The U.K. will release economic growth figures while in Europe, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi is due to testify before the European Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Committee in Brussels.
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