Stock market today: Asian shares rise, bitcoin hits record high ahead of US inauguration

BANGKOK (AP) — Asian stocks rose early Monday and bitcoin surged to a record high ahead of the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump.

US markets will be closed on Monday for a holiday.

The price of bitcoin rose as high as $109,134 early Monday, up from $99,563, according to CoinDesk. Cryptocurrencies have gained significantly since Trump was elected as investors bet on his benefit for such assets.

European benchmarks rose in early trade, with Britain’s FTSE 100 inching 0.1% higher to 8,515.80, while the CAC 40 in Paris added 0.2% to 7,729.06. Germany’s DAX was almost unchanged at 20,902.00.

Futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1 percent.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 1.8% to 19,925.81 after China’s central bank kept its key lending rates unchanged. The Shanghai Composite index edged 0.1% higher to 3,244.38.

A Hong Kong court extended a deadline for troubled property developer Country Garden to reach an agreement with its creditors until next month, in the latest slow step towards recovery from a prolonged slump in China’s property sector.

The atmosphere was also helped by optimistic comments by US and Chinese officials ahead of Trump’s initiation later Monday. Pledges from both sides to work to improve relations may have eased some concerns over trade tensions that have built up as companies prepare for a possible increase in tariffs on Chinese exports to the United States

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index rose 1.2% to 38,902.50. The dollar fell against the Japanese yen and traded at 156.17 yen, down from 156.31 yen. Expectations are building that the Bank of Japan may raise its key interest rate at a monetary policy meeting later this week. Higher rates tend to increase the value of the yen against the dollar.

The euro rose to $1.0309 from $1.0281.

In South Korea, the Kospi fell 0.1% to 2,520.05. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.5% to 8,347.40.

Taiwan’s Taiex rose 0.5% and India’s Sensex gained 0.7%. Bangkok’s SET rose 0.1 percent.

In other trading early Monday, benchmark U.S. crude fell 19 cents to $77.20 a barrel. barrel, and Brent crude, the international standard, gave up 23 cents to $80.56 a barrel. barrel.

On Friday, the S&P 500 rose 1% and the Dow rose 0.8%. The Nasdaq composite rose 1.5 per cent.

SLB helped lead the market after the oilfield services provider delivered bigger profits and revenues at the end of 2024 than analysts expected. It jumped 6.1% after it also raised its dividend by 3.6% and said it is returning $2.3 billion to its investors by buying back its own stock.

All the major technology companies in what has become known as ” Magnificent seven ” rose: Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla. Because they are so massive in size, their movements weigh more heavily on the S&P 500 and other indexes than other stocks.

Such stocks have come under pressure recently due to criticism their prices may have shot too high after leading the market for so many years. Such concerns grew after the Finance Ministry interest rates rose on the bond market. Higher interest rates hurt prices for all kinds of investments, especially those seen as the most expensive.

But stocks largely got a boost this week from a encouraging report on US inflationwhich raised hopes that Federal Reserve may provide more interest rate cuts this year. More such cuts, which began in September, would ease the brakes on the economy and boost the prices of investment, although they could also fuel inflation.

Wall Street has reeled down and up in recent weeks as economic reports pushed traders to renew their expectations about what the Fed will do about interest rates. Lower inflation concerns have sent Treasury yields down and stocks up, while worsening inflation concerns have triggered the opposite reaction.