A day after sinking to some of their worst numbers since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, Asian markets rebounded strongly Tuesday.
Tokyo’s Nikkei index earned 1,051 points to finish the trading session 4.8% higher. The S&P/ASX index in Sydney was close behind, earning 3.9% at its closing bell.
Elsewhere in the region, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was 2.7% higher in late afternoon trading, and Shanghai’s Composite index had gained 1.7%. The Sensex in Mumbai was up 1%, while Taiwan’s TSEC was 1.8% higher.
The rebound was sparked by Monday’s announcement by the U.S. Federal Reserve that it would begin buying individual corporate bonds as part of its efforts to help the overall U.S. economy recover from the COVID-19 lockdowns that ground all economic activity to a halt. The announcement sparked a late rally on Wall Street, which had lost ground over fears of a second wave of coronavirus infections.
All three U.S. indexes are trending upward in futures trading Tuesday.
Oil markets are holding steady, with U.S. crude trading at $37.10 per barrel down slightly but in virtually unchanged, while Brent crude oil is trading at $39.76 per barrel, up 0.1%.