Stocks in Japan scored their best day in over a month
Wall Street's rally on Thursday bled over into Asia, while surprise monetary easing out of Singapore only added to the risk-on attitude. In Japan, the yen fell again against the dollar, giving the Nikkei a
third straight impressive win with a 3.2% gain -- its best day since March 2. Also lifting Japanese markets were comments from Bank of Japan (BoJ) Governor Haruhiko Kuroda, who said policymakers wouldn't "hesitate to take additional easing measures" if necessary. Ahead of the country's first-quarter
gross domestic product (GDP) release on Friday, China's Shanghai Composite tacked on 0.5%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended 0.9% higher, and South Korea's Kospi closed with a 1.8% gain.
Stocks' gains in Europe are less impressive. Lower Brent crude futures are sapping investor sentiment, as is news that the Bank of England (BoE) left interest rates unchanged in light of
ongoing "Brexit" concerns. Among stocks, luxury retailer Burberry is moving lower after reporting disappointing same-store sales --
following the lead of this sector peer. The FTSE 100 has still managed a 0.02% lead at midday, while France's CAC 40 was up 0.1% and Germany's DAX was up 0.2%.
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