Asian markets settled mostly higher on Thursday as investors awaited the release of US consumer price data later in the day, which could provide further clues about how the US Federal Reserve will set monetary policy at its March 15-6 policy meeting. Market sentiments improved further by tracking overnight gains in Wall Street amid expectations that fears about a more aggressive hawkish cycle are a bit overdone. Japanese shares gained with technology shares, while upbeat earnings results from Honda Motors also supported sentiments. Moreover, Chinese shares rose after reports of state-backed funds intervening in the stock market.
Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 3,485.91 | 5.96 | 0.17 |
Hang Seng | 24,924.35 | 94.36 | 0.38 |
Jakarta Composite | 6,823.64 | -10.97 | -0.16 |
KLSE Composite | 1,570.10 | 18.59 | 1.20 |
Nikkei 225 | 27,696.08 | 116.21 | 0.42 |
Straits Times | 3,428.00 | 7.96 | 0.23 |
KOSPI Composite | 2,771.93 | 3.08 | 0.11 |
Taiwan Weighted | 18,338.05 | 186.29 | 1.03 |