Nikkei breaks 60,000 as Asian markets climb on strong earnings

Asian equities climbed to fresh highs on Thursday after Wall Street’s benchmark posted a third straight record close, as a solid start to the US earnings season helped investors look beyond rising oil prices. Japan’s benchmark briefly rose above 60,000 for the first time, South Korea’s Kospi reached a record high and Taiwan’s main index also touched an all-time peak. The gains came even as Brent crude extended its advance after Iran seized two vessels in or near the Strait of Hormuz. This underscores how investors are still willing to back risk assets so long as corporate earnings remain supportive and supply shocks do not yet threaten global growth in a material way. Record run extends across Asia MSCI’s broadest index of...