- Biden, Harris mark Oct. 7 with call for Mideast peace
- Dupont set for Toulouse return after post-Olympic holiday
- French rugby bosses tighten discipline after nightmare Argentina tour
- Oil prices extend gains on Mideast tensions, Wall Street slips
- Visitors to get rare view of Rome's Trevi Fountain
- Europe's asteroid mission Hera launches despite hurricane
- Man City and Premier League both claim victory in legal case
- Deschamps delight as 'light back on' for Pogba after doping ban
- Biden, Harris urge Mideast peace on Oct. 7 anniversary
- Neeskens, tough midfielder in Cruyff's Ajax and Dutch teams
- UN warns world's water cycle becoming ever more erratic
- Oil prices extend gains on Mideast tensions, Wall Street retreats
- Ex-Dutch football star Johan Neeskens dies
- Man Utd battling to improve fortunes, says Evans
- What is microRNA? Nobel-winning discovery explained
- Masood, Abdullah centuries lift Pakistan to 328-4 in first England Test
- Hurricane Milton strengthens fast, threatens Mexico, Florida
- Tunisia's President Saied set for landslide election win
- Barca hoping to return to Camp Nou 'by end of year'
- Trump to open second golf course at Scotland resort in summer 2025
- Super-sub Jhon Duran rewarded with new Aston Villa deal
- US duo win Nobel for gene regulation breakthrough
- Masood hits first ton for four years to power Pakistan to 233-1
- Fritz wins delayed match to reach Shanghai Masters third round
- Naomi Osaka pulls out of Japan Open with back injury
- Weather may delay launch of mission to study deflected asteroid
- China to flesh out economic stimulus plans after bumper rally
- Artist Marina Abramovic hopes first China show offers tech respite
- Asian markets track Wall St rally on US jobs data
- Pakistan 122-1 at lunch in first England Test
- Kazakhs approve plan for first nuclear power plant
- World marks anniversary of Oct. 7 attack on Israel
- 'Second family': tennis stars hunt winning formula with new coaches
- Philippines, South Korea agree to deepen maritime cooperation
- Mexico mayor murdered days after taking office
- Sardinia's sheep farmers battle bluetongue as climate warms
- Japan govt admits doctoring 'untidy' cabinet photo
- Israel marks first anniversary of Hamas's October 7 attack
- Darvish tames Ohtani as Padres thrash Dodgers
- Asian markets track Wall St rally on jobs data
- Family affair as LeBron, Bronny James make Lakers bow
- Cancer, cardiovascular drugs tipped for Nobel as prize week opens
- As Great Salt Lake dries, Utah Republicans pardon Trump climate skepticism
- Amazon activist warns of 'critical situation' ahead of UN forum
- Mourners pay tribute to latest victims of deadly Channel crossing
- Tunisia incumbent Saied set to win presidential vote: exit polls
- Phillies win thriller to level Mets series
- Yu bags first PGA Tour win with playoff win
- PSG held by Nice to leave Monaco clear at top of Ligue 1
- AC Milan fall at Fiorentina after De Gea's penalty heroics
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Yen rallies after Japan hikes rates, stocks rise before Fed
The yen rallied against the dollar Wednesday after the Bank of Japan hiked interest rates for just the second time in 17 years, while European and Asian stock markets rose on hopes for a cut in US borrowing costs.
Oil prices surged almost three percent after Hamas said its political leader was killed in an Israeli air strike in Iran, stoking supply fears in the crude-rich Middle East.
London equities advanced on the eve of a possible rate cut from the Bank of England owing to a sharp slowdown in British inflation.
In the eurozone, where the European Central Bank has already started to cut borrowing costs, Frankfurt and Paris stocks were also sharply higher.
Later on Wednesday, the Federal Reserve is expected to keep US interest rates at a two-decade high, but traders will watch for hints about a September reduction.
In contrast in Tokyo, the Bank of Japan has this year shifted its focus as prices continue to rise at rates above its target, after more than a decade of ultra-loose monetary policy to kickstart the stuttering economy and flatlining inflation.
That saw rates lift in March to around zero to 0.1 percent -- the first hike since 2007 -- marking a shift away from a long-running campaign of negative rates. Wednesday's decision put them at 0.25 percent.
- 'Clear hawkish message' -
The BoJ news pushed the yen to strengthen to as much as 150.07 against the dollar, which was a level last seen in March.
"The rate hike was not a complete surprise but, being only the second interest rate increase in 17 years, it delivers a clear hawkish message," said ActivTrades analyst Ricardo Evangelista.
Many commentators had predicted the bank would stand pat this month, but Japan's newly appointed top foreign exchange official said the benefits of a weaker yen were outweighed by the demerits.
"While the recent depreciation of the yen has both advantages and disadvantages, the demerits are becoming more noticeable," Atsushi Mimura told Bloomberg in an interview Monday, pointing to higher energy and food prices as well as the effect on importers.
The yen's advance comes just weeks after the unit hit a nearly four-decade low close to 162 at the start of July. Higher rates push up government yields, making assets more attractive to anyone looking for better returns.
Japan's finance ministry said Wednesday it spent 5.5 trillion yen to boost the yen's value by intervening in forex markets between June 27 and July 29.
The surge in the currency's value in mid-June, shortly after US inflation data came in lower than anticipated, had triggered speculation among analysts of an intervention by Japanese authorities.
The Nikkei 225 bounced back from morning losses on Wednesday after the announcement and finished more than one percent higher.
The rest of Asia also advanced, with optimism running high that while the Fed will not cut rates later in the day, it will tee up a reduction at its next gathering.
There is also talk of at least one more before the end of the year.
Hong Kong and Shanghai advanced, helped by hopes for more policy support following another weak batch of data on Chinese factory activity.
Dealers brushed off news that Microsoft saw an increase in quarterly profit but its key cloud computing unit fell short.
That came after results last week from Tesla and Alphabet missed forecasts, fuelling concerns about the tech titans that have led a rally in markets this year.
More reports are due this week from tech giants Apple, Amazon and Facebook-parent Meta.
- Key figures around 1115 GMT -
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 150.53 yen from 153.09 yen on Tuesday
West Texas Intermediate: UP 2.8 percent at $76.82 per barrel
Brent North Sea Crude: UP 2.5 percent at $80.63 per barrel
London - FTSE 100: UP 1.5 percent at 8,394.34 points
Paris - CAC 40: UP 1.5 percent at 7,583.05
Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.6 percent at 18,513.74
Euro STOXX 50: UP 1.1 percent at 4,894.07
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.5 percent at 39,101.82 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 2.0 percent at 17,344.60 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 2.1 percent at 2,983.75 (close)
New York - Dow: UP 0.5 percent at 40,743.33 (close)
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2843 from $1.2832
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0834 from $1.0813
Euro/pound: UP at 84.35 pence from 84.24 pence
P.Santos--AMWN