SINGAPORE — Shares in Asia-Pacific were mixed in Wednesday morning trade following overnight gains on Wall Street that saw the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surging more than 2%. Investors will also watch for the release of China’s latest benchmark lending rate.
The Nikkei 225 climbed 0.55% in early trade as shares of robot maker Fanuc jumped more than 1%. The Topix index advanced 0.8%.
Australian stocks also traded in positive territory as the S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.25%.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan traded little changed.
China is set to announce its latest one-year loan prime rate at 9:15 a.m. HK/SIN. A majority of the traders and analysts surveyed in a snap Reuters poll expect a cut in the loan prime rate this month.
Investors have been watching for signs of policy support from Chinese authorities as the mainland continues to grapple with its worst Covid outbreak since the initial shock of the pandemic in 2020.
Overnight stateside, the S&P 500 climbed around 1.61% to 4,462.21. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 499.51 points, or 1.45%, to 34,911.20 while the Nasdaq Composite surged 2.15% to 13,619.66.
Currencies
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 100.968 — higher as compared with levels around 100.5 seen earlier in the week.
The Japanese yen traded at 129.19 per dollar, continue to weaken after going above 128 against the greenback yesterday. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7395, still lower as compared to levels above $0.745 seen last week.