A woman walks past an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm in Tokyo. (AP photo)Asian shares advanced today, riding a wave of optimism about a possible treatment for the coronavirus that set off a rally on Wall Street powerful enough to override data showing the U.S. economy had logged its worst quarterly performance since 2009. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 surged 2.6 percent in morning trading to 20,277.56, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 1.3 percent to 5,461.00. On Wall Street, the upswell of hope about curbing the virus outbreak was so strong that investors completely sidestepped the report showing the U.S. economy shrank at a 4.8 percent annual rate in the first three months of the year. The S&P 500 vaulted 2.7 percent higher, extending a rally that’s brought the U.S. stock market to the brink of its best month in 45 years.

Source: The Standard April 30, 2020 03:11 UTC