Global Markets: Asian markets seen firmer after Wall Street turns positive

Global Markets: Asian markets are expected to swing higher on Thursday, after U.S. stocks reversed course from a three-day losing streak that led the technology-heavy Nasdaq into correction territory. The U-turn in US stocks, however, was already reflected in some markets, so the impact in Asia may be muted, said Rodrigo Catril, a senior FX strategist at National Australia Bank.

"We still expect markets to open with a positive turn, but we don`t expect a meaningful acceleration of it," Catril said. "It should be a positive open but not a bombastic open."
Australian S&P/ASX 200 futures rose 1.28% in early trading and Japan`s Nikkei 225 futures added 0.13%. Hong Kong`s Hang Seng index futures rose 0.85%.

MSCI`s gauge of stocks across the globe gained 1.44%.

Wall Street ended higher on Wednesday after investors ploughed into technology stocks, taking advantage of the recent dip. Stay-at-home companies such as Facebook Inc and Google-parent Alphabet Inc climbed, while electric-car maker Tesla Inc rebounded nearly 11% after suffering its biggest one-day percentage drop.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 439.58 points, or 1.6%, to 27,940.47, the S&P 500 gained 67.12 points, or 2.01%, to 3,398.96 and the Nasdaq Composite added 293.87 points, or 2.71%, to 11,141.56.
Oil prices recovered some of the losses they saw in the prior trading session when they hovered near three-month lows.

U.S. crude rose 3.5% and Brent added 2.5%, although COVID-19 outbreaks still threaten to slow a global economic recovery. U.S. crude eased 0.5% in early Asian trade on Thursday to $37.88 a barrel.
Stephen Innes, chief global markets strategist at Australian financial services firm AxiCorp, said in a note that "in the background ... continues to be COVID-19 concerns and the delicate balancing act needed to return economies to a new normal and manage the likely rise in cases in the northern hemisphere when social activities move indoors, and (COVID-19) could spread more aggressively."

The U.S. dollar slid from a four-week high on Wednesday, led by losses against the euro after a report about European Central Bank officials becoming more confident in their outlook for the region`s recovery.

The dollar index <=USD> fell 0.325%, with the euro up 0.03% to $1.1806.

The safe-haven greenback was also hit by investors` growing appetite for risk as U.S. stocks rebounded.

U.S. Treasury yields rose on Wednesday after the government sold $35 billion in 10-year notes to slightly soft demand.