Asian Shares Rise on Wall Street's Lead, Nikkei Gains 0.5%

Asian markets traded predominantly higher on Thursday, spurred by a surge in Wall Street after positive earnings reports from major corporations.

Key Market Movements

* Japan's Nikkei 225 climbed 0.5% to 39,020.16, led by Honda Motor Co.
* Australia's S&P/ASX 200 jumped 1.2% to 8,520.70, fuelled by mining and energy stocks.
* South Korea's Kospi edged up 0.7% to 2,526.87, supported by gains in technology and automotive sectors.
* Hong Kong's Hang Seng increased 0.8% to 20,753.87, lifted by financials and property stocks.
* Shanghai Composite added 1.0% to 3,260.49, buoyed by consumer and technology sectors.

Wall Street's Influence

* S&P 500 advanced 0.4%, lifted by Amgen and Toymaker Mattel's strong earnings.
* Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.7%, or 317 points, driven by Boeing and Caterpillar's gains.
* Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.2%, supported by Apple and Microsoft.

Notable Earnings Performance

* Toymaker Mattel surged 15.3% after exceeding analysts' earnings estimates and revising its profit forecast upwards.
* Amgen rallied 6.5%, driven by stronger-than-expected revenue and profit growth.
* Alphabet fell 7.3% despite reporting better-than-anticipated earnings, as investors focused on slowing cloud business growth.
* Advanced Micro Devices dropped 6.3% even though it beat profit expectations, raising concerns about the company's AI offerings.

Tariffs Impact and Inflation Concerns

* Market sentiment improved after a 30-day reprieve on tariffs imposed on Mexico and Canada by President Donald Trump.
* Analysts predict potential tariffs on autos from the European Union and other moves, which could lead to a temporary increase in inflation.
* Investors express concern that inflationary pressures may hinder the Federal Reserve's ability to cut interest rates this year.

Bond Market Developments

* Treasury yields declined after a report indicated slower growth in the U.S. services sector.
* The 10-year Treasury yield fell to 4.42% from 4.52%.

Currency Markets

* The U.S. dollar weakened slightly against the Japanese yen, trading at 152.42 yen.
* The euro declined against the U.S. dollar, trading at $1.0391.