Most of the Asian equity benchmarks are trading mostly in green in the early deals on Wednesday on optimism about global economic growth after data showed that US consumer confidence in October rose to its highest level in nearly 17 years and as China's Caixin manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index for October matched expectations. Meanwhile, the US Federal Reserve is also likely to be in focus, with the central bank due to announce its latest monetary policy decision later in the day. While the Fed is expected to leave interest rates unchanged, investors will be looking for clues about the possibility of a rate hike in December. Japanese stocks scaled a fresh 21-year high, cheered by booming profits for Japan Inc. including exporters such as Sony and Nitto Denko. Among the other Asian markets, South Korea, Shanghai, Singapore, Indonesia, and Hong Kong are also higher. Bucking the trend, Malaysia and Taiwan are in negative territory.
Nikkei 225 rose 331.41 points or 1.51% to 22,343.02, Hang Seng added 150.1 points or 0.53% to 28,395.64, KOSPI Index jumped 29.12 points or 1.15% to 2,552.55, Straits Times gained 14.65 points or 0.43% to 3,388.49, Jakarta Composite increased 6.51 points or 0.11% to 6,012.29, and Shanghai Composite was up by 6.02 points or 0.18% to 3,399.36.
On the flip side, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI dropped 3.64 points or 0.21% to 1,744.28, and Taiwan Weighted was down by 2.75 points or 0.03% to 10,791.05.