Equities across the Asia-Pacific region soared to their highest point since mid-February after an overnight rally on Wall Street, with investors betting that the US Federal Reserve would not raise rates this coming week. The positive speculation was supported by falls in Australian and Japanese bond yields in line with those in US Treasury bonds, and the US dollar remained subdued during early Asian trading. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares rose by 0.6%, boosted by a 1.66% jump in Japan’s Nikkei. However, traders’ fears over future rate hikes were not eliminated, with the odds still holding at one in four for a rate increase on 14 June.
