Asian sharemarkets were gaining ground on Wednesday, Dec 22,  as the risk appetite of global investors rises heading into year-end, despite the surging number of Omicron variant cases around the world. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.6%, after U.S. stocks ended the previous session with gains.

Australian shares were down 0.1%, which analysts said was the result of a higher US dollar overnight which weakened appetite for commodities and the sector’s related stocks.

Japan’s Nikkei stock index was 0.1% higher.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index jumped 1.2% and China’s blue-chip CSI 300 Index was 0.23% up in eary trade. Tech stocks were the major driver of the Hong Kong strong open after trading in negative territory for most of the week.

A better night on Wall Street provided the positive lead for Asian markets with a sharp rebound in sentiment for U.S stocks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 560.54 points, or 1.6%, to 35,492.7, the S&P 500 gained 81.21 points, or 1.78%, to 4,649.23 and the Nasdaq Composite added 360.14 points, or 2.4%, to 15,341.09. The jump came despite growing concerns as the spread of the Omicron variant in the lead-up to traditional holiday periods around the world.

The variant, first detected last month, is causing infections to double in 1.5 to 3 days, according to the World Health Organization.

It is not yet known whether it causes more serious illness than the Delta variant. However, Asian investors were mostly overlooking the current rise in case numbers.    Source: Reuters