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Asian stocks rise again on stimulus hopes, yuan’s gain

A man walks past an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 at a securities firm in Tokyo, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016. Asian stocks rose for a second day Tuesday as rising hopes for more central bank stimulus and a jump in crude oil prices gave investors relief from the mauling that markets have suffered so far this year. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A man walks past an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 at a securities firm in Tokyo, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016. Asian stocks rose for a second day Tuesday as rising hopes for more central bank stimulus and a jump in crude oil prices gave investors relief from the mauling that markets have suffered so far this year. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko) A man walks past an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 at a securities firm in Tokyo, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016. Asian stocks rose for a second day Tuesday as rising hopes for more central bank stimulus and a jump in crude oil prices gave investors relief from the mauling that markets have suffered so far this year. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

By Associated Press 3 min read

HONG KONG (AP) – Asian stocks rose for a second day Tuesday as a strengthening yuan and hopes for more central bank stimulus gave investors relief from the mauling that markets have suffered so far this year.

KEEPING SCORE: Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index added 0.2 percent to 16,054.43 after soaring 7.2 percent the day before, which was its biggest daily gain since September. South Korea’s Kospi rose 1.4 percent to 1,887.05 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng advanced 1.3 percent to 19,159.76. The Shanghai Composite Index in mainland China gained 3 percent to 2,827.84 and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was up 1.4 percent to 4,810.00. Benchmarks in Taiwan and most of Southeast Asia also rose.

STIMULUS HOPES: With U.S. markets closed for a holiday and therefore providing no guidance in either direction, the global stock rally extended into a second day. Investor sentiment remained positive that central banks would continue to ease monetary policy thanks to comments from the head of the European Central Bank. With the ECB set to discuss policy measures on March 10, Mario Draghi told the European Parliament on Monday that the bank has a range of instruments it can deploy if it decides more stimulus is needed. Earlier, a disappointing report on Japanese economic growth also raised hopes for more policy easing.

RENMINBI RELIEF: China’s strengthening currency also helped boost sentiment. The yuan hovered near its strongest level so far this year a day after the central bank guided the currency, also known as the renminbi, sharply higher. Meanwhile, new yuan loans jumped 71 percent in January, the official Xinhua news agency reported Tuesday, suggesting solid demand in the world’s No. 2 economy.

ANALYST’S TAKE: “Since the start of January everything went south and we really needed some positive news,” said Jackson Wong, associate director at Huarong International Securities. “Factors that were affecting the markets negatively have turned positive now: the yen is weaker, the renminbi is stronger, global markets like the U.S. are stabilizing. All the negative catalysts from January are turning better.”