Asian stocks on Wednesday rose sharply as U.S. lawmakers and the White House agreed on a massive stimulus package to tackle the coronavirus crisis.
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Japanese stocks were also lifted by the Bank of Japan’s purchases of exchange-traded funds.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average gained 1454.28 points, or 8.04 per cent, to close at 19,546.63, the largest gain in 26 years, while the broader Topix index jumped 6.87 per cent.
Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX200 index closed up 5.54 per cent while the broader All Ordinaries index also soared 5.32 per cent.
Stimulus measures abroad also helped lift South Korean stocks with the Kospi index rising 5.89 per cent after gaining 8.6 per cent on Tuesday.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed 3.81 per cent on the day while the Shanghai Composite index gained 2.17 per cent and Taiwan shares closed up 3.87 per cent.
The main index of the Philippine Stock Exchange gained 5.31 per cent on the day.
According to Astro Castillo, a market analyst in the Philippines, the steps being taken by government is bringing relief to the market, including policy actions of monetary boards in other countries that are affected.
“I believe we are not yet out of the woods, though.
“The market will remain volatile,’’ Castillo said.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 11.37 per cent and the S&P 500 rose 9.38 per cent, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index grew 8.12 per cent.
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