BANGKOK — Shares advanced in Asia on Thursday after a rally on Wall Street spurred by the Federal Reserve chair’s comments on easing the pace of interest rate hikes to tame inflation.
Signs that China may be shifting its approach to containing COVID-19 outbreaks to focus more on vaccinations also helped drive buying of shares across the region.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index added 0.9% to 28,226.08 while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong advanced 1.4% to 18,859.73. The Shanghai Composite index climbed 0.5% to 3,166.23. In Seoul, the Kospi picked up 0.3% to 2,479.84. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 1% to 7,354.40.
Bangkok’s SET rose 0.9% a day after the central bank raised its key interest rate by a quarter point to 1.25%, aiming to curb inflation.
On Wednesday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell, said in comments at the Brookings Institution that the central bank could begin moderating its…
