Asian shares hit seven-year high on Ukraine, ECB hopes 

Asian shares steadied near seven-year highs on Thursday, underpinned by hopes of a ceasefire in Ukraine, although a cautious mood prevailed for now ahead of a European Central Bank meeting later in the session.

Global shares had rallied on Wednesday when Russian President Vladimir Putin, after speaking to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko by phone, said he believed Kiev and pro-Russian separatists could reach agreement at talks in Minsk on Friday.

While Poroshenko also indicated the conversation with Putin had injected some momentum into efforts to end the Ukraine conflict, Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk dismissed the plan as a “deception”.

The S&P 500 ended down 0.1 percent on Wednesday and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.6 percent, underperforming many other markets.

U.S. shares were dragged down by a fall in Apple, which was hit by concerns over a possible security breach of its iCloud service a week before the launch of its new iPhone and as rival Samsung Electronics Co Ltd launched a new product.

Samsung Electronics rose 1.8 percent, helping to lift Seoul’s Kospi 0.2 percent.

The euro traded at $1.3147 , little changed in Asia but off a one-year low of $1.3110 hit on Tuesday.

While the ECB is unlikely to take action on Thursday, any hint from President Mario Draghi that the bank is readying such a program could drive down the euro.

The Bank of Japan maintained its policy on Thursday, leaving its massive stimulus program unchanged. The Bank of England also meets and is expected to leave policy alone.

The dollar traded at 104.82 yen to the dollar, off Wednesday’s eight-month high of 105.31.

Sterling hit a seven-month low of $1.6440 on Wednesday and last stood at $1.6458 , not helped by jitters Scotland may vote to break up the United Kingdom in a referendum on Sept. 18.

Source: Reuters

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