Markets Mostly Rise But Tech Earnings Dent Recovery Optimism

Hong Kong, Feb 3 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 3rd Feb, 2023 ) :Asian equities mostly rose Friday following gains on Wall Street but optimism over a possible pause in Federal Reserve interest rate hikes was being weighed against worries about the global economy after a year of monetary tightening.

Disappointing earnings from Wall Street titans Apple, Amazon and Alphabet -- who together are worth almost $5 trillion -- indicated higher borrowing costs and elevated inflation were weighing on consumer demand.

The readings came in towards the end of a week when the stocks rally that defined most of January hit the barriers as traders worried that the buying had been overdone and that there were plenty more bumps in the road for the economy.

Those concerns overshadowed optimism about China's reopening and recovery from nearly three years of zero-Covid policies that hammered business activity.

They also offset the positive mood created by an acknowledgement from the Fed that it was making progress in bringing inflation down from multi-decade highs, fuelling hopes it was nearing the end of its rate hike cycle.

Eyes are now turning to the release of US jobs data later on Friday, which will provide a clearer idea about the state of the world's biggest economy.

"A softer payrolls data, so long as it does not fall off a cliff triggering a recessionary (backlash), could re-engage all the favourite trades of the year," said SPI Asset Management's Stephen Innes.