Tokyo — Oil prices clung to this month’s high on Tuesday after Iraqi forces seized the oil-rich city of Kirkuk from largely autonomous Kurdish fighters while Asian shares held firm on optimism about upcoming earnings. Short-term US bond yields and interest rates jumped after a report US President Donald Trump favoured Stanford economist John Taylor to head the Federal Reserve. Japan’s Nikkei was flat after its 10-day winning streak until Monday while MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.1% having gained 10 of the past 12 sessions. "There is no major country that is facing economic troubles. We have a decent global growth, upbeat corporate sentiment and no inflation. Stocks are the obvious choice in this environment," said Arihiro Nagata, head of derivatives at SMBC Nikko Securities. Oil prices held near their highest levels in almost three weeks after Iraqi government forces captured the major Kurdish-held oil city of Kirkuk in a response to a Kurdish ...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.