Global stocks rise after Wall St breaks string of declines

By JOE McDONALD
AP Business Writer

BEIJING (AP) — Global stocks and U.S. futures rose Monday after Wall Street rebounded from a seven-week string of declines and China eased anti-virus curbs on business activity in Shanghai and Beijing.

London and Frankfurt opened higher. Shanghai, Tokyo and Hong Kong advanced. Oil stayed above $110 per barrel.

The future for Wall Street’s S&P 500 index was 0.9% higher after the benchmark on Friday ended up 6.6% for the week after surging inflation declined. U.S. markets are closed Monday for a holiday.

“Markets rallied into the long weekend, providing a positive tone at the start of this week,” ING economists said in a report.

In early trading, the FTSE 100 in London gained 0.4% to 7,613.78 and the DAX in Frankfurt advanced 0.7% to 14,564.68. The CAC 40 in Paris rose 0.8% to 6,565.13.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average future was up 0.7%.

On Friday, the S&P gained 2.5%, propelled by gains for tech companies.

Investors were relieved after Commerce Department data showed U.S. inflation, which has prompted the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates, decelerated to 6.3% over a year earlier in April, its first decline in 17 months.

Markets are worried about whether the Fed can control inflation that is running at a four-decade high without tipping the biggest global economy into recession.

The U.S. market has been in a slump for the past two months over fears about interest rate hikes that might slow economic activity, and the impact of Russia’s war on Ukraine and a Chinese economic slowdown.

Crude oil prices are up nearly 60% this year due to fears about disruptions in supplies from Russia, the second-biggest global exporter. Wheat prices are up about 50% and corn prices are up 30%.

The Dow rose 1.8% and the Nasdaq, dominated by tech stocks, gained 3.3%.

In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.6% to 3,149.06 after more factories and shops in Beijing and Shanghai were allowed to reopen.

The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo surged 2.2% to 27,369.43 and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 2.1% to 21,123.93. The Kospi in South Korea advanced 1.2% to 2,669.66.

Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 was 1.4% higher at 7,286.60.

India’s Sensex added 1.8% to 55,856.06. New Zealand and Southeast Asia markets gained.

More factories, shops and other businesses are allowed to reopen this week in Shanghai and in the Chinese capital, Beijing, after authorities declared outbreaks under control. The Shanghai city government promised rent and tax cuts, faster approvals for construction projects and more subsidies for electric car purchases.

In energy markets, benchmark U.S. crude rose 44 cents to $115.53 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the price basis for international oils, advanced 48 cents to $116.04 per barrel in London.

The dollar edged up to 127.34 yen from Friday’s 127.10 yen. The euro rose to $1.0766 from $1.0733.