Asian markets settled mostly down on Wednesday ahead of US Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech on the central bank's future monetary policy path. Meanwhile, mixed Chinese trade data and hawkish comments from the US Federal Reserve officials on rate path have also weighed on market sentiments. Chinese shares declined as investors await a possible meeting between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping next week, while Hong Kong shares fell ahead of the release of Chinese inflation data due on Thursday. Moreover, Japanese shares dropped slightly, despite Moody's Investors Service in its latest report affirming Japan's A1 rating and maintaining a stable outlook.
| Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
| Shanghai Composite | 3,052.37 | -4.90 | -0.16 |
| Hang Seng | 17,568.46 | -101.70 | -0.58 |
| Jakarta Composite | 6,804.11 | -39.68 | -0.58 |
| KLSE Composite | 1,457.60 | -5.77 | -0.39 |
| Nikkei 225 | 32,166.48 | -105.34 | -0.33 |
| Straits Times | 3,129.72 | -44.09 | -1.41 |
| KOSPI Composite | 2,421.62 | -22.34 | -0.92 |
| Taiwan Weighted | 16,740.83 | 55.88 | 0.33 |
