BEIJING – Asian stock markets rose for second day Tuesday on hopes for progress toward a possible coronavirus vaccine that might allow the world to revive manufacturing, shopping and normal life.Benchmarks in Shanghai, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Sydney rose while Seoul fell less than 0.1%.On Wall Street, the benchmark S&P 500 index closed 1.2% higher on Monday after Pfizer Inc.
said early data on a vaccine under development suggest it might be it might be 90% effective at preventing COVID-19, though that doesn’t mean its release is imminent.“This offers a ray of hope that the market did not hesitate to take advantage of,” said Tai Hui of J.P.