Stocks in Asia traded higher on Thursday, following Wall Street that closed higher despite a choppy session on strong bank earnings.
As of 9:39 Bangkok time on Thursday, Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.87% to 48,089.63 points. China’s Shanghai Composite gained 0.25% to 3,921.86 points, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index increased 0.10% to 25,936.81 points. South Korea’s Kospi added 1.77% to 3,722.05 points, a record-high after IMF raising growth outlook from 0.8% to 0.9% in 2025, and Australia’s ASX200 rose 1% to 9,081 points.
Last night, U.S. equities experienced volatile movements, yet finished higher as robust quarterly results from leading banks buoyed investor sentiment. The S&P 500 advanced 0.4%, while the Nasdaq Composite, heavily weighted toward technology firms, climbed 0.7%. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average hovered just beneath the flat line at the close.
Oil prices advanced roughly 1% in early trading on Thursday following comments from U.S. President Donald Trump that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had agreed to cease oil imports from Russia, a country that currently supplies about a third of India’s crude needs.
Brent crude climbed 0.79% to $62.40 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) moved up by 0.79% as well to trade at $58.73 a barrel.
Speaking on Wednesday, President Trump stated that India will discontinue oil purchases from Russia—its largest supplier. He further indicated that Washington’s next step would be to convince China to halt Russian crude imports, as the U.S. intensifies its campaign to stem Moscow’s energy revenue and push for negotiations over the Ukraine conflict.
Meanwhile, Gold prices soared past the $4,200 per ounce threshold for the first time on Wednesday, further fueling a record rally as increasing speculation over interest rate cuts and persistent geopolitical uncertainty prompted investors to seek refuge in the safe-haven asset. Spot gold advanced 0.62% to trade at $4,234.49 per ounce.
