Asian stocks rise after China rate cuts, Japan export gain
Associated PressBEIJING — Asian stock markets rose Thursday after China cut interest rates to shore up flagging economic growth and Japan reported a double-digit rise in exports. On Wall Street, the benchmark S&P 500 index fell 1% on Wednesday as investors tried to figure out how fast the Federal Reserve will roll back economic stimulus to cool inflation. The Chinese central bank cut rates on one- and five-year loans after growth in the world’s second-largest economy sank to 4% over a year earlier in the latest quarter following a crackdown on surging debt among real estate developers. Amid uncertainty about heavily indebted developers, Pang said, “banks will be picky about who they lend to.” The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.1% to 3,563.11 and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong advanced 1.8% to 24,570.06.