Asian markets settled higher on Thursday amid thin volumes ahead of Christmas break. Wall Street’s overnight gains also supported Asian market sentiments as Omicron fears subsided and the latest data of revised third-quarter economic growth painted a positive picture of the world's largest economy. While, the US White House also said it was resuming talks on a major social spending bill with a senator Joe Manchin, who is crucial to passing the legislation. Chinese shares gained as Chinese authorities have adopted strict pandemic control measures under their policy of seeking to drive new transmissions to zero. Ahead of the country hosting Winter Olympics in Beijing, China has ordered a lockdown in the northern city of Xi’an, a city of 13 million people in central China. Moreover, Japanese shares advanced with positive data from a South African study which suggested that there are reduced risks of hospitalisation and severe disease in people infected with the Omicron corona-virus variant versus the Delta one.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 3,643.34 | 20.72 | 0.57 |
Hang Seng | 23,193.64 | 91.31 | 0.40 |
Jakarta Composite | 6,555.55 | 25.96 | 0.40 |
KLSE Composite | 1,500.32 | 7.73 | 0.52 |
Nikkei 225 | 28,798.37 | 236.16 | 0.83 |
Straits Times | 3,096.81 | 9.30 | 0.30 |
KOSPI Composite | 2,998.17 | 13.69 | 0.46 |
Taiwan Weighted | 17,946.66 | 119.83 | 0.67 |
