Asian equity markets ended mostly higher on Wednesday, with Japanese shares leading gains, as exporters received a boost from a relatively weaker yen and the Nikkei survey showed the health of Japan's manufacturing sector improved at a pace not seen in nearly three years during February. Chinese shares ended higher after reports showed activity in China's manufacturing sector expanded faster than expected in February. While the official PMI rose to a three-month high of 51.6 in the month, the non-manufacturing PMI, which is a better indicator of domestic demand, eased slightly to 54.2 from 54.6 in the previous month. The Caixin / Markit manufacturing PMI rose to 51.7 from 51.0, beating forecasts as new export orders accelerated at the strongest pace in over two years. Further, US President Donald Trump struck an optimistic tone in his first major address to a joint session of Congress and promised a ‘renewal of the American spirit’ with his economic goals and priorities. He offered few policy details on his economic plan but said he was open to a broad immigration reform bill that could be passed if both Republicans and Democrats in Congress were willing to compromise. Meanwhile, the South Korean markets were closed for the Independence Day holiday.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 3,246.34 | 4.60 | 0.14 |
Hang Seng | 23,776.49 | 35.76 | 0.15 |
Jakarta Composite | 5,363.06 | -23.64 | -0.44 |
KLSE Composite | 1,697.69 | 3.92 | 0.23 |
Nikkei 225 | 19,393.54 | 274.55 | 1.44 |
Straits Times | 3,122.77 | 26.16 | 0.84 |
KOSPI Composite | - | - | - |
Taiwan Weighted | 9,674.78 | -75.69 | -0.78 |