BANGKOK (AP) — Asian stock markets rose Wednesday, buoyed by more positive employment data out of the U.S. and expectations that central banks in the U.S. and Europe may take steps to support their respective economies.
The U.S. Labor Department said employers posted the most job openings in four years in June, a positive sign that hiring in the world's largest economy may pick up. Layoffs also fell. That follows Friday's report that U.S. employers in July added the most jobs in five months, far more than economists were expecting.
The positive jobs news out of the U.S. added to optimism that investors have been feeling for much of the past few weeks, largely on hopes that the European Central Bank will play a more pivotal role in Europe's debt crisis.
Gains among European stocks Tuesday were largely due to hopes the ECB will soon start buying the bonds of Spain and Italy and a hint from Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy that he could request a financial bailout for his country.
Spain has seen the yield on its benchmark 10-year bonds fall below the 7 percent level considered unsustainable in the long-run. It was at 6.80 percent at the end of trading Tuesday, a sign of confidence in the Spanish economy.
"The near-term outlook for risk assets has improved following stronger-than-expected US July payrolls and hints from Spain's Prime Minister Rajoy that he's willing, at last, to consider applying for full assistance from the EU," Stan Shamu of IG Markets in Melbourne said in a market commentary.
Stocks on Wall Street jumped Tuesday thanks in part to strong corporate earnings. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.4 percent to close at 13,168.60. The Standard & Poor's 500 rose 0.5 percent to 1,401.35. The Nasdaq composite index rose 0.9 percent to 3,015.86.
Meanwhile, recent comments by Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke that the slow economic recovery has hurt many Americans has kept hope alive that the Fed will take more steps to kick-start the economy at its next meeting in September.
Benchmark crude for September delivery fell 35 cents to $93.32 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $1.47 to finish at $93.67 per barrel on the Nymex on Tuesday.
In currencies, the euro fell to $1.2395 from $1.2410 late Tuesday in New York. The dollar fell to 78.51 yen from 78.65 yen.
