Asia Stocks Chase Wall St. Gain; U.S. Futures Dip: Markets Wrap

(Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks followed their American peers higher Wednesday after a bout of earnings optimism, though U.S. futures dipped as tensions over Hong Kong climbed.Equity benchmarks rose from Tokyo and Seoul to Sydney after the S&P 500 Index closed at a four-week high. Most markets saw gains pared after China threatened to retaliate if the U.S. Congress passes a bill offering support to pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong. Shanghai stocks dipped. The yen advanced along with Treasuries, and the yuan retreated against the dollar.Hong Kong is the latest flashpoint between the U.S. and China clouding the outlook, with the House of Representatives passing legislation that would require an annual review of whether the city is sufficiently autonomous from Beijing to justify its special trading status under U.S. law. A similar bill is in front of the Senate.In Hong Kong itself, a speech by Chief Executive Carrie Lam saw the Hang Seng index of shares erasing gains at one point. When Lam later announced some housing initiatives -- via a video -- that boosted property and finance stocks.On the earnings front in the U.S., JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s third-quarter results beat estimates, sending its shares higher, while Johnson & Johnson raised its sales and earnings forecast for the year.Meanwhile, U.K. and EU negotiators worked into the night, amid optimism they were on the point of a breakthrough on a Brexit deal. The aim would be to present a draft to national delegations on Wednesday morning, an EU diplomat said.Elsewhere, the Turkish lira jumped and the country’s benchmark stock index rose after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed milder penalties over its military campaign in Syria than U.S. lawmakers had demanded. Crude oil ticked higher and gold was little changed.Here are some key events coming up this week:U.S. retail sales Wednesday are forecast to increase for a seventh straight month. Sales in the “control group” are also expected to rise. Consumer spending is carrying the weight of U.S. economic growth so the data will be monitored closely for any signs of slowing.China releases third-quarter GDP, September industrial production and retail sales data on Friday.Here are the main moves in market:StocksJapan’s Topix Index rose 0.6% as of 2:31 p.m. in Tokyo, after climbing as much as 1.6% earlier.Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 1.3%.Korea’s Kospi Index rose 0.5%.S&P 500 futures fell 0.3%. The S&P 500 Index increased 1% Tuesday.Hang Seng Index was up 0.2%.Shanghai Composite fell 0.4%.Euro Stoxx 50 futures dipped 0.3%.CurrenciesThe yen rose 0.2% to 108.66 per dollar.The offshore yuan fell 0.2% to 7.1007 per dollar.The euro traded at $1.1031, little changed.The pound was at $1.2757, down 0.2% after jumping 1.4% overnight.BondsThe yield on 10-year Treasuries fell three basis points to 1.74%.Australia’s 10-year bond yield rose four basis points to 1.05%.CommoditiesWest Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.1% to $52.87 a barrel.Gold rose 0.2% to $1,48.32.To contact the reporter on this story: Andreea Papuc in Sydney at apapuc1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Christopher Anstey at canstey@bloomberg.netFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.

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