Asian Shares Rise as Trump Backs Down  01/22 07:17

   Asian shares mostly advanced on Thursday, tracking Wall Street, after U.S. 
President Donald Trump walked back from imposing tariffs on eight European 
countries over Greenland and ruled out using military force to take control of 
the territory.

   HONG KONG (AP) -- Asian shares mostly advanced on Thursday, tracking Wall 
Street, after U.S. President Donald Trump walked back from imposing tariffs on 
eight European countries over Greenland and ruled out using military force to 
take control of the territory.

   The future for the S&P 500 gained less than 0.1% and that for the Dow Jones 
Industrial Average was virtually flat on Thursday.

   Tokyo's Nikkei 225 climbed 1.7% to 53,688.89, with technology stocks leading 
gains. SoftBank Group jumped 11.6% and equipment maker Disco Corp. soared 
17.1%. Advantest, which makes testing equipment for computer chips, surged 5%.

   South Korea's Kospi closed 0.9% higher at 4,952.44 after crossing the 5,000 
mark for the first time, as traders cheered. Technology-related stocks drove 
the rally. Shares of chipmaker SK Hynix picked up 2%, while Samsung Electronics 
rose 1.9%.

   Hong Kong's Hang Seng edged less than 0.1% higher to 26,600.68. The Shanghai 
Composite index edged 0.1% higher to 4,122.58.

   In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 gained nearly 0.8% to 8,848.70.

   Taiwan's Taiex rose 1.6%, while India's Sensex added 0.2%.

   U.S. markets logged t heir biggest losses since October on Tuesday as 
investors reacted to Trump's threat over the weekend to slap tariffs of 10% on 
Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands 
and Finland for opposing U.S. control of Greenland, sparking concerns over 
worsening relationships between the U.S. and its European allies.

   But Trump, attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, backed 
down on Wednesday and said he would not use force to acquire Greenland. The 
U.S. president also said in a post on his social media site that he had agreed 
with the head of NATO on a "framework of a future deal" on Greenland and on 
Arctic security.

   The easing tensions drove Wall Street optimism. On Wednesday, the S&P 500 
climbed 1.2% to 6,875. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1.2% to 
49,077.23, while the Nasdaq composite also rose 1.2%, to 23,224.82.

   Halliburton, the oil field services company, jumped 4.1% following 
stronger-than-expected profits for the latest quarter. United Airlines rose 
2.2% also after better-than-expected quarterly profits. Netflix fell 2.2% even 
as it reported a stronger profit than expected, as investors focused on factors 
including a slowing growth of subscribers.

   The price of gold fell 0.2% to $4,828.70 per ounce, reflecting investors' 
reduced worries, after passing the $4,800 mark ahead of Trump's reversal of 
stance on Greenland as many flocked to safe-haven assets.

   In the bond market, U.S. Treasury yields also eased following lessened fear 
among investors as well as a calming of Japan's bond market turmoil. The yield 
on the 10-year Treasury eased to 4.25% from 4.30% late Tuesday.

   Japan's long-term bond yields surged to records earlier this week after 
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's decision to call a snap election in February. 
That sparked concerns over her pledges to cut taxes and increase spending, 
which could hinder efforts to rein in government debt.

   The U.S. dollar rose to 158.75 Japanese yen from 158.27 yen, prompting 
analysts to speculate that authorities might intervene if the yen falls any 
further.

   The euro rose to $1.1692 from $1.1687.

   U.S. benchmark crude oil shed 16 cents to $60.46 per barrel. Brent crude, 
the international standard, fell 24 cents to $65.00 per barrel.