Global shares advance on possible virus cure

Asian shares recorded two consecutive sessions of gains on Monday. This could be attributed to investors’ upbeat sentiment after the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the use of blood plasma from recovered patients as an option to cure the coronavirus.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan advanced 0.65%. The index is currently heading toward a six-month peak seen last week. Meanwhile, e-mini futures for the S&P 500 tallied a 0.3% gain.

Japan’s benchmark index Nikkei jumped 0.4%, salvaging initial losses. Chinese shares were seen upbeat as the blue chips soared 0.8%. South Korea’s KOSPI climbed 0.9%, retreating from a series of declines after hitting more than a two-year high earlier this month.

Market sentiment was upbeat partly because of a Financial Times report about the United States’ plan of bypassing normal U.S. regulatory standards to expedite an experimental coronavirus vaccine from the United Kingdom.