Asian equity markets ended mostly higher on Wednesday, with Japanese shares climbing to a near two-week high in the run-up to a BOJ meeting, after Wall Street stocks rose sharply overnight amid a rebound in oil prices, upbeat consumer confidence and home price data as well as better-than-forecast earnings from companies such as Procter & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson, 3M Co. and Coach Inc. Hong Kong shares rebounded, probably helped by modest improvement in other regional markets though investors remained nervous as oil pulled back again and as they waited on a policy decision from the Federal Reserve later in the day. Chinese shares trimmed early losses to end slightly lower, adding to the previous session's steep losses. Worries about economic growth resurfaced after official data showed profits earned by Chinese industrial enterprises declined at a faster pace in December, weighed down by sluggish domestic demand and severe overcapacity across many manufacturing industries. Industrial profits fell an annual 4.7 percent, marking the seventh straight month of declines.
| Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
| Shanghai Composite | 2,735.56 | -14.23 | -0.52 |
| Hang Seng | 19,052.45 | 191.65 | 1.02 |
| Jakarta Composite | 4,583.63 | 73.16 | 1.62 |
| KLSE Composite | 1,631.54 | 4.88 | 0.30 |
| Nikkei 225 | 17,163.92 | 455.02 | 2.72 |
| Straits Times | 2,546.18 | 0.57 | 0.02 |
| KOSPI Composite | 1,897.87 | 26.18 | 1.40 |
| Taiwan Weighted | 7,849.83 | 21.16 | 0.27 |