Stocks in China and Hong Kong paced a rally in Asia today, as merger talks between China Merchants Energy Shipping Co. and Sinotrans & CSC Holdings Co. bolstered sentiment. Additionally, following
soft U.S. inflation and retail data on Wednesday, traders across the region priced in lower expectations for a Federal Reserve rate hike this year. On the currency front, a backpedaling yen supported upside for Tokyo-listed stocks, while the won surged after the Bank of Korea opted to stand pat on monetary policy. By the close, China's Shanghai Composite jumped 2.3% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 2%, while Japan's Nikkei and South Korea's Kospi each advanced 1.2%.
Europe is also on higher ground at midday, as expectations for a more dovish U.S. Fed give bulls a confidence boost. However,
luxury retailers are lagging once again, after Burberry cited an "increasingly challenging environment" for its Chinese patrons as one of the factors behind its disappointing first-half sales numbers. At last check, the German DAX is up 1.7%, the French CAC 40 has advanced 1.1%, and London's FTSE 100 is 1% higher.
