Markets track Wall St rally but China worries cast shadow

NEW YORK - Markets mostly rose on Friday following a tech-led rally on Wall Street that helped soothe traders' concerns that the Federal Reserve will likely not cut interest rates, though China's economic woes dragged on Hong Kong and Shanghai.

US data points on inflation and jobs, and comments from central bank officials have combined with growing geopolitical tensions to drag equities in January, bringing an end to an end-of-year rally.

The readings -- showing consumer inflation topping expectations and a resilient labour market -- show the world's number one economy remained in rude health despite borrowing costs at two-decade highs.

And on Thursday, fresh figures pointed to a surprise slowdown in jobless claims, suggesting the Fed would likely have to keep rates elevated for some time to make sure inflation does not pop back up.

In light of the latest data, traders have lowered their bets on a March interest rate cut to a little more than 50 percent, down from 80 percent last week.

The gains in New York were largely driven by a surge in tech giants including Apple, Nvidia and Amazon after chip titan Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co unveiled a strong outlook for capital spending and revenue that boosted hopes for 2024.

TSMC jumped more than six percent in Taipei, tracking an almost 10 percent jump in its US-listed firms.

And other Asian tech firms were on the rise, with Tokyo Electron up six percent and Advantest surging more than eight percent in Tokyo, while Seoul-traded Samsung jumped more than four percent.

Broader markets were also enjoying a day in the sun though traders struggled to maintain the morning's momentum.