The Nasdaq led gains on Wall Street as investors went bargain-hunting in US technology shares beaten down last week.
Stock indexes rose with US technology shares and silver also jumped, as investors returned to risk assets.
Technology shares led gains on Wall Street and the Nasdaq was up the most of the three major US indexes. Software names in particular had been pressured the previous week by concerns that artificial intelligence could intensify competition and squeeze margins.
Japanese stocks, yen and bonds surge after election
Stocks in Japan rose to record highs following the resounding election win of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
Japan’s Nikkei jumped 3.9 per cent to all-time highs as a decisive majority for the ruling LDP party cleared the way for more spending and tax cuts.
The prospect of increased borrowing pushed two-year Japanese government bond yields to their highest since 1996 at 1.3 per cent.
The yen strengthened sharply, reversing six consecutive days of losses, most notably against the dollar.
UK markets steady after political turmoil
British stocks and bonds had come under pressure as Prime Minister Keir Starmer faced calls to quit from his party’s leader in Scotland after two key aides resigned in as many days.
London’s FTSE 100 erased earlier losses and was last higher.
Indexes close higher across regions
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 31.97 points, or 0.07 per cent, to 50,149.46, the S&P 500 rose 40.27 points, or 0.58 per cent, to 6,972.60 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 234.24 points, or 1.02 per cent, to 23,266.32.
The Dow had surged on Friday to close above the 50,000 level for the first time.
MSCI’s gauge of stocks across the globe rose 11.99 points, or 1.15 per cent, to 1,054.81.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 0.7 per cent.
Dollar weakens, euro rises
The US dollar index fell 0.8 per cent to 96.83, while the euro rose 0.85 per cent to $1.1917.
Against the Japanese yen, the dollar weakened 0.91 per cent to 155.77.
Bonds and commodities in focus
Britain’s 10-year gilt yield touched 4.6 per cent earlier, while US Treasury yields edged lower, easing from earlier gains.
The yield on benchmark US 10-year notes fell 0.4 basis points to 4.202 per cent, from 4.206 per cent late on Friday.
In commodities, spot silver climbed 6.3 per cent to $US82.86 ($A116.94) per ounce after struggling last week. It hit an all-time high of $US121.64 ($A171.67) on January 29. Gold prices also rose.
Oil gained after the US Department of Transportation issued an advisory to US-flagged vessels to stay as far as possible from Iranian territory while passing through the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman.
US crude rose 81 cents to settle at $US64.36 ($A90.83) a barrel and Brent gained 99 cents to settle at $US69.04 ($A97.43).
