Most Asian stock markets gain amid expectation of a ¥20tn stimulus package from Abe

Most Asian stock market indices were trading higher on Thursday (21 July). The Shanghai Composite Index too was up 0.79% at 3,051.82 as of 5.18am GMT. This followed news by Japanese local media that its government led by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was planning to introduce a ¥20tn (£141bn, €169bn, $187bn) stimulus package.

While the exact date or timeline was not mentioned, it was said that the Japanese package that follows Abe winning the recent elections, would be introduced to save the Japanese economy from a possible deflation. The package was also expected to offset the negative impacts from the Brexit vote.

"All eyes [will be] on Japan this morning, with talk of a 20 trillion yen stimulus package through a supplementary budget.... Although most economists would still stress that genuine reform still needs to be addressed to really put Japan on the right path", Chris Weston, chief market strategist at brokerage firm IG was quoted as saying by CNBC.

Another news report stated that the uptick in Asian markets was helped by investors remaining bullish ahead of the European Central Bank's (ECB) monetary policy decision, scheduled for today (21 July). While interest rates are expected to remain unchanged, many analysts said they were interested in knowing ECB's comments on the Brexit vote.

Indices in the rest of Asia traded as follows on 21 July at 5.34am GMT:

Overnight (20 July), the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 18,595.03, up 0.19%, while the FTSE 100 closed at 6,728.99, up 0.47%.

Among commodities, oil prices were trading in the green. While WTI crude oil was trading higher by 0.65% at $44.94 (£34, €40.74) a barrel, Brent crude was trading 0.42% higher at $47.37 a barrel as of 5.42am GMT.