Asian stocks surge following Bank of Japan interest rate hike

Astsian stocks rose on Wednesday after the Bank of Japan raised its benchmark interest rate to 0.25% from 0.1%. The Nikkei 225 closed up 1.5% at 39,101.82. Despite the expected rate hike, the yen fluctuated, trading between 153.00 and 151.60 against the dollar.

The Federal Reserve and Bank of England are set to announce their policy decisions soon, with the Fed likely to maintain current rates until September.

In other markets, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 2.2%, and Shanghai’s Composite index increased 2.1% as China’s manufacturing slowdown spurred stimulus hopes. Australia’s ASX 200 rose 1.6% amid rising inflation, while South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.9% following strong earnings from Samsung.

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In the U.S., the S&P 500 dipped 0.5%, the Dow Jones rose 0.5%, and the Nasdaq dropped 1.3%. PayPal and JetBlue saw significant gains, while Nvidia fell 7%. The Russell 2000 index of smaller stocks added 0.3%, extending its monthly gain to 9.5%.

Bond yields declined, with the 10-year Treasury yield falling to 4.14%. Strong economic reports on job openings and consumer confidence influenced these movements.

Oil prices rose, with U.S. crude at $76.28 per barrel and Brent at $79.56. The euro edged up to $1.0825.