Asian markets rallied on Thursday, with the Australian dollar reaching an eight-month high as upbeat earnings and fresh trade deals lifted investor appetite for riskier assets.Japan’s Topix index touched a record high, tracking Wall Street’s overnight gains, after a new trade agreement between Japan and the US fueled hopes of more deals to avoid sweeping tariffs, Reuters reported.MSCI’s Asia-Pacific share index, excluding Japan, increased by 0.3%. Japan’s Topix continued its upward trajectory, gaining 1.4% to exceed its previous record from last year.The Australian dollar traded at $0.66, near its November 2024 peak of $0.6604.US signed trade deals with the Philippines and Indonesia, and a similar agreement with the European Union is expected soon as talks continue to move forward.The EU-US trade negotiations are near completion, proposing 15% tariffs on European imports with exemptions for certain items, according to European Commission representatives. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced upcoming US-China discussions in Stockholm.The second-quarter earnings season is in progress in the US, with 23% of S&P 500 companies having reported so far. According to LSEG data, 85% of them have surpassed Wall Street estimates.Nasdaq and S&P futures advanced after Alphabet’s results exceeded forecasts, marking the beginning of the “Magnificent Seven” earnings reports.Alphabet exceeded projections significantly, citing strong cloud services demand and increased capital expenditure plans. However, Tesla reported its largest quarterly sales decline in over ten years, missing profit forecasts.S&P 500 e-minis advanced 0.13%, while Nasdaq futures gained 0.4%.The US dollar decreased 0.1% to 146.38 yen. US crude rose 0.4% to $65.5 per barrel, while, Gold traded at $3,390.84 per ounce, up 0.1%.
