Stocks set to rise; RBNZ expected to cut rates
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Japan’s Osaka is the 43rd most expensive city to live in, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit.
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Japan stocks were set to rise Wednesday, after Wall Street gained overnight with the S&P 500 closing at a record high as investors looked past tariffs and inflation headwinds.
Futures for Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 in Chicago were trading at 39,320, while those in Osaka last traded at 39,290, compared with the index’s last close of 39,270.40.
Business sentiment for Japanese manufacturers rose for the second month in February, results from the Reuters Tankan poll indicates. The manufacturers’ sentiment index rose to plus 3 — its highest level since November — from plus 2 in January.
Overnight in the U.S., all three indexes rose, with the S&P 500 closing at a record high after stocks rallied seconds before the closing bell. The broad market index gained 0.24% to a record close of 6,129.58, after touching an intraday record of 6,129.63 before the final bell. The Nasdaq Composite closed up 0.07% at 20,041.26, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 10 points, or 0.02%, to finish the session at 44,556.34.
The energy sector was the best-performer in the S&P 500, rising 1.9%, while tech stocks also ticked up.
— CNBC’s Brian Evans and Sarah Min contributed to this report.