Asian markets rose on Thursday to claw back some of the previous day’s hefty losses as investors tracked a bounce on Wall Street sparked by jobs data that soothed worries about the US economy.Signs that a majority of the US Supreme Court was sceptical about the legality behind a swath of President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs also provided a little support.Trader sentiment crept back after Wednesday’s selloff that came on the back of growing worries that the tech-fuelled AI rally that has characterised markets this year has led to a bubble that could soon pop.The rush for cover — which tracked big losses on Wall Street — hammered some regional giants, including Japanese tech investor SoftBank and South Korean chipmakers Samsung and SK hynix.However, New York investors enjoyed a much happier Wednesday after figures from payrolls firm ADP showed US private sector employment jumped far more than expected last month, having surprisingly fallen the month before.That came as a separate report indicated that activity in the crucial services industry grew far more than estimates suggested.The jobs data release is likely to attract extra attention because it is one of the few economic indicators to come out in recent weeks owing to the US government shutdown.Asia followed suit after Wall Street’s advance, which was also helped by upbeat earnings.Tokyo and Seoul were both well up, although still some way from clawing back all of Wednesday’s losses.Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Singapore, Taipei, Mumbai, Manila, Bangkok and Jakarta also rose.London opened on the front foot but Paris and Frankfurt dipped.Still, there is some concern that valuations have run a little too high on the back of the AI frenzy, which has pushed some firms to records — with US chip titan Nvidia topping a $5 trillion valuation.”Valuation concerns have intensified as the (S&P 500) index has climbed higher throughout the year,” said IG market analyst Fabien Yip.”Investors are questioning whether current price levels can be sustained, particularly on stocks boosted by the AI boom if interest rates remain elevated for longer than expected.”Investors were keeping a keen eye on developments in Washington after a majority of Supreme Court justices queried Trump’s ability to impose his tariffs, which have raked in billions of dollars in customs revenue.The nine justices are considering Trump’s use of emergency powers to impose “reciprocal” tariffs on nearly every US trade partner, as well as levies targeting Mexico, Canada and China over their alleged roles in illicit drug flows.Several conservative justices, along with the three liberals, questioned at a hearing on Wednesday whether the International Emergency Economic Powers Act that Trump invoked confers the authority to impose tariffs.”The statute doesn’t use the word tariffs,” said Chief Justice John Roberts, and imposing tariffs is equivalent to taxation, which has always been a “core power of Congress”.The justices sought to clarify whether Congress has to give clear authorisation for policies with significant economic or political consequences.Justice Sonia Sotomayor, a liberal, noted that the power to impose taxes is a “congressional power, not a presidential power”.”You want to say tariffs are not taxes, but that’s exactly what they are,” Sotomayor said.Still, lawyers noted that if the top court finds Trump’s global tariffs illegal, the government can tap other laws to temporarily impose up to 15 percent duties while pursuing pathways for more lasting levies.- Key figures at around 0815 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.3 percent at 50,883.68 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 2.1 percent at 26,485.90 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 1.0 percent at 4,007.76 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 9,784.10 Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1510 from $1.1488 on WednesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3062 from $1.3048Dollar/yen: DOWN at 153.80 yen from 154.13 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 88.12 pence from 88.40 penceWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.5 percent at $59.87 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.4 percent at $63.77 per barrelNew York – Dow: UP 0.5 percent at 47,311.00 (close)

A French-British investigation into alleged bribery at France-based defence giant Thales is examining a contract with Indonesia, an AFP investigation has showed.In November last year, Britain’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) said it had launched a joint investigation with its French counterparts into “suspected bribery and corruption” at the multinational, which denies any wrongdoing.A 41-year-old management controller, who worked at the company between August 2018 and June 2023, was the whistleblower who alerted the authorities and caused the probe to be opened, according to two sources following the case who requested not to be named because not allowed to speak to the press.The former member of staff, who wishes to remain anonymous and who AFP reached through his lawyer, said he started asking colleagues questions after he noticed suspicious orders on the margins of big air defence deals with Indonesia and Saudi Arabia.He said that in late 2018 he noticed a curious payment order for a service worth £400,000 ($520,000 at today’s rate) on the sidelines of a deal between Thales UK and Indonesia.He said he grew suspicious when someone asked him for a retroactive approval of the order with incoherent documents produced after it was made, and reported this to his superiors.”The only thing I was told was to keep quiet,” he said.He alleged that months later, he noticed another £100,000 transferred to Saudi Arabia, where a contract had also been signed.He said he alerted colleagues in writing and orally, then via an internal complaint platform in 2022.He believes this is why he was fired.- Multiple probes -Thales told AFP the former employee only filed an internal complaint “several hours after being summoned to a meeting towards a possible dismissal for professional incompetence”.A team of in-house auditors led an internal probe and concluded that there were no grounds to his allegations, it said, adding however that it was cooperating with the British and French authorities.Neither the SFO nor the French financial prosecutor’s office wished to comment on an ongoing investigation.One source following the case said the Indonesian contract was being investigated in the joint probe.But no source confirmed or denied that any Saudi contract was also being examined.A judicial source, also wishing to remain anonymous, said the French investigators were looking at an “arms market” in Asia, without saying which country was involved.The French judiciary is looking into at least five other cases of alleged graft involving the defence firm.An investigating magistrate is investigating the sale of submarines to Malaysia in 2002 and could order a trial against parties including the firm.Four other preliminary probes, launched between 2016 and 2023, are looking at alleged corruption in places including Brazil, India and the United Nations. No charges have been pressed against Thales in those investigations.Thales told AFP the probes were ongoing and that it “strictly follows national and international regulation”.