Asian shares, US futures rise on debt ceiling deal

Asian shares and U.S. stock futures rose on Monday, thanks to a weekend deal by U.S. President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to suspend the government’s debt ceiling, ending a protracted stalemate and providing some relief for investors.

After weeks of negotiations, congressional Republican McCarthy and Biden forged an agreement late on Saturday to avert an economically destabilising default to suspend the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling until 2025. The deal will now have to passes through the narrowly divided Congress.

The positive news lifted S&P 500 futures 0.2% in Asia while Nasdaq futures firmed 0.4%.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) gained 0.3%, after a 1.1% drop the previous week. Tokyo’s Nikkei (.N225) surged 1.3% to a fresh 33-year high.

Moving in the opposite direction, China’s bluechips (.CSI300) eased 0.1% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index (.HSI) slipped 0.3%, weighed down by profit data for China’s industrial firms on the weekend that reinforced growing signs of loss of momentum in the world’s second-biggest economy.

This report’s information was first seen on REUTERS; to read more, click this link.