Sentiment remained bullish in the Asian region and most of the Asian peers ended the trade in the green following a rally in US markets on Tuesday. The US Institute for Supply Management said last night that it’s manufacturing index hit 53.9 percent in December, an increase of 1.2 points from November and the fastest rate in six months, surpassing expectations. Any figure over 50 indicates growth while anything below suggests a contraction. Meanwhile, Japanese Nikkei rose over a percentage point to a three-week closing high on Wednesday as investor risk appetite returned after upbeat US and European economic data improved the global growth outlook. However, Chinese and Hong Kong benchmarks edged lower in the trade after Chinese Premier’s remarks that China faces relatively difficult business conditions.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 2,169.39 | 30.03 | -1.37 |
Hang Seng | 18,727.31 | 150.10 | -0.80 |
Jakarta Composite | 3,907.42 | 49.54 | 1.28 |
Nikkei 225 | 8,560.11 | 104.76 | 1.24 |
Straits Times | 2,711.02 | 22.66 | 0.84 |
Seoul Composite | 1,866.22 | 9.19 | -0.49 |
Taiwan Weighted | 7,082.97 | 29.59 | 0.42 |