SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – Asian stocks bounded higher Thursday after weak data from major economies boosted hopes for stimulus and slow-paced Federal Reserve interest rate hikes but European markets were tepid as investors turned attention to the upcoming U.S. jobs report.
KEEPING SCORE: Britain’s FTSE 100 edged up 0.1 percent to 6,817.41. France’s CAC 40 was flat at 5,061.27 while Germany’s DAX fell 0.1 percent to 11,988.70. U.S. stocks futures augured a weak day for Wall Street. S&P 500 futures fell 0.4 percent to 2,045.60.
US DATA: The U.S. Labor Department reports total nonfarm payroll employment for the month of March on Friday. Analysts said the figures may hit a softer note after payroll processor ADP said on Wednesday that U.S. companies added fewer jobs last month than economists had expected. Other U.S. data, also released on Wednesday, showed that the U.S. economy may have slowed during the first quarter. An index of manufacturing activity declined for the fifth month in a row and the government said U.S. construction spending fell in February.
ANALYST’S TAKE: “The policy implication is that the Fed is still leaning toward a rate hike this year,” Mizuho Bank Ltd. said in a commentary. “The nuance though is that the pace of tightening will be more gradual and may be pushed back slightly depending on data.”
ASIAN DATA: The day before the weak U.S. data, two biggest economies in Asia reported dour industrial figures, adding to pressure on leaders to launch new stimulus. Two surveys by HSBC Corp. and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing showed weak Chinese manufacturing in March and employers cut more jobs. That came after China’s central bank governor’s warning that economic growth had fallen “too sharply.” In Japan, a central bank’s quarterly survey found companies expect conditions to deteriorate and plan to cut investment.