Global Prices Mostly Higher Tuesday    08/04 04:51

   Global shares were mostly higher Tuesday following a rally on Wall Street 
that was helped by easing oil prices.

   TOKYO (AP) -- Global shares were mostly higher Tuesday following a rally on 
Wall Street that was helped by easing oil prices.

   Regional investors were still weighing the impact from last week's joint 
U.S.-Japan currency intervention, analysts said.

   France's CAC 40 added 0.3% in early trading to 8,643.50, while the German 
DAX surged 0.9% to 26,232.04. Britain's FTSE 100 edged up nearly 0.4% to 
10,897.75.

   U.S. shares were set to drift higher with Dow futures up 0.1% at 53,409.00. 
S&P 500 futures rose 0.2% to 7,644.00.

   In Asia, Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 0.3% to finish at 63,957.53, as 
the U.S. dollar rose to 157.80 Japanese yen from 157.18 yen. The euro cost 
$1.1513, inching down from $1.1514. The dollar was trading at 160-yen levels 
before regulators stepped in to boost the yen's value after it fell to nearly 
40-year lows.

   Some analysts said the effectiveness of such an intervention remains 
uncertain as it doesn't address the fundamental economic reasons behind the 
currency fluctuations, including inflation, interest rates and the relative 
strengths of the economies.

   "A U.S.-backed operation carries far more signaling weight than Tokyo acting 
alone, and the pledge of further action will give speculators pause. But any 
U.S. contribution will probably be constrained by size," a report by BMI, a 
unit of Fitch Solutions, said.

   Matthew Ryan, head of market strategy at global financial services firm 
Ebury, noted the latest effort could have some impact because it appears to 
signal a real change in monetary policy rather than just a one-time defensive 
move.

   "This is an historic and meaningful development for the yen, which 
materially improves confidence in our mildly bullish call for the currency," he 
said.

   South Korea's Kospi gained 1.6% to 6,358.95. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 added 
1.4% to 9,145.80. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.6% to 25,852.92, while the 
Shanghai Composite gained 0.3% to 3,822.28.

   In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude gained 15 cents to $80.49 a barrel. 
Brent crude, the international standard, jumped 98 cents to $84.75 a barrel.

   A day earlier, oil prices dropped more than 5% after U.S. President Donald 
Trump said over the weekend that he had decided to hold off on new strikes 
against Iran.

   Brent's price careened between $72 and $102 last month as worries rose and 
fell over the war in Iran and when oil tankers would be allowed to freely exit 
the Persian Gulf again to deliver crude to customers worldwide.