Asian shares rise after rally on Wall Street as data show US inflation slowing

Tokyo, Jul 15 (AP) Asian shares mostly rose Wednesday, tracking a rally on Wall Street following a report that showed US inflation was not as bad last month as economists expected. South Korea's Kospi surged 6.2 per cent to 7,284.41 as prices rebounded from a recent sell-off in semiconductor stocks. Shares in computer chipmaker SK Hynix rose 9.4 per cent, while those of Samsung Electronics surged 6.1 per cent. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 1.3 per cent to 68,613.89. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.4 per cent to 8,841.10. Hong Kong's Hang Seng edged up 1.5 per cent to 24,701.10, while the Shanghai Composite lost 0.2 per cent to 3,957.79 after the Chinese government reported the economy expanded at a 4.3 per cent annualised pace in April-June, slowing sharply from 5 per cent in the first quarter of the year. Stock price gains overall were moderate given worries that the United States and Iran may return to an all-out war. That has pushed oil prices higher. Investors are also watching for earnings reports from various companies for the spring. Renewed attacks have raised the risks of further disruptions of transport of oil and gas through the Strait of Hormuz. In energy trading, benchmark US crude rose 30 cents to USD 79.64 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, gained 62 cents to USD 85.35 a barrel. “The US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding signed last month has proved to be anything but. The two sides are once again exchanging military strikes, and they hold completely different views on the state of affairs in the Strait of Hormuz,” said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade. “With shipping around the Gulf becoming increasingly fraught with danger, traffic flows are declining once more,” he said. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 added 0.4 per cent to recover some of its 0.8 per cent loss from the prior day, closing at 7,543.59. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added less than 0.1 per cent to 52,508.27. The Nasdaq composite climbed 0.9 per cent to 26,107.01. Stocks got help from easing yields in the bond market, which fell after a report said US consumers had to pay prices for gasoline, food and other costs of living that were 3.5 per cent higher last month than a year earlier. Lower inflation can relieve pressure on the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates. Higher rates would keep a lid on inflation, but they also slow the economy and hurt prices for all kinds of investments. Following the inflation report, traders saw less than a 17 per cent chance that the Fed will raise its main interest rate at its next meeting in a couple weeks. Rebounds for big, influential tech stocks also helped steady the market. Micron Technology rose 4.9 per cent, and Nvidia climbed 4.1 per cent. A day before, they were two of the heaviest weights on the S&P 500 after falling 4.4 per cent and 3.5 per cent, respectively. In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury dropped to 4.58 per cent from 4.62 per cent late Monday. That halted its run higher from 3.97 per cent before the war with Iran began. In currency trading, the US dollar inched down to 162.15 Japanese yen from 162.19 yen. The euro cost USD 1.1446, up from USD 1.1425. (AP) FHK GSP