Stocks in Asia and Europe are putting in impressive gains following central bank decisions from the U.S. and Japan
Asian bourses followed the bullish lead of their U.S. peers, as yesterday's
policy decisions from the Fed and Bank of Japan (BoJ) sparked gains for stocks around the globe. Rising crude oil prices also provided an extra lift for equities. The yen moved higher against the dollar as a result, though Japanese stock markets were closed for holiday.
Digging deeper, China's Shanghai Composite and Hong Kong's Hang Seng both closed higher for a second straight day, posting respective gains of 0.6% and 0.4%. South Korea's Kospi, meanwhile, grabbed a fifth consecutive daily win, advancing 0.7%.
European stocks are flying even higher.
Bank stocks continue to outperform following the BoJ's policy shake-up, while energy and mining stocks are getting a boost from rising crude oil prices and a weaker dollar. Even a Bank of England (BoE) warning that Britain still faces a "challenging period" following the June "Brexit" vote did little to dent trader confidence. As such, France's CAC 40 is leading the way at midday, gaining 2.2% on an unexpected rise in manufacturing confidence. Meanwhile, Germany's DAX is close behind, adding 2.1%, and London's FTSE 100 is up 1.4%.
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