A record close for the U.S. benchmark indices spurred gains in Asian equities, despite disappointing economic data from Japan. Expectations that the European Central Bank will extend its bond buying program beyond the March deadline has fueled a rally in equity markets across the globe.
The ECB will add new policy measures at its meeting later today, according to a Bloomberg survey, with 64 percent of respondents saying that the central bank will extend quantitative easing at the current pace of 80 billion euros per month.
Record Highs Yet Again
A rally in telecom and property stocks sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 Index to fresh record highs on Wednesday. Pharmaceutical stocks lagged after President-elect Donald Trump told Time Magazine that he will bring down drug prices.
Once the ECB meeting is out of the way, focus will shift squarely to the U.S. Federal Reserve, which is expected to hike benchmark lending rates by at least a quarter percentage point during its bi-monthly policy meeting on December 13-14. Odds for the same are wedged at 100 percent, according to futures rates tracked by Bloomberg.
Japan Growth Gloom
Third-quarter data showed Japan's economy expanded less than was projected, growing an annualized 1.3 percent, due to a drop in business spending and private inventories.
A median estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg had projected an expansion of 2.3 percent. The government's projection of the overall size of the economy rose due to the new methodology of calculating the country's GDP. The value of the country's nominal GDP was revised to 532.2 trillion yen from an earlier 500.6 trillion yen.
Oil Prices Steady
Oil prices continued to trade near the $50 per barrel mark after supplies at Oklahoma and Cushing, the delivery point for the West Texas Intermediate crude, rose the most last week since 2009.
U.S. crude inventories declined by 2.4 million barrels last week to 485.8 million barrels, according to a report from the energy information administration.
Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries or OPEC will meet non-member countries on Saturday to discuss output cuts.
Positive Start?
The SGX Nifty index was trading higher by 0.72 percent to 8,201 as of 7:05 a.m., indicating a positive start for Indian equities. Benchmark indices snapped a two-day gaining streak on Wednesday after the Reserve Bank of India surprised traders and economists by leaving interest rates unchanged. India's central bank also cut the country's growth forecast to 7.1 percent from an earlier 7.6 percent projection.
Read: RBI Survey Shows Sharp Fall In Household Inflation Expectations
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