Asian markets were trading mostly higher on Thursday as traders reacted to China's central bank holding the interest rate on the one-year medium-term lending facility at 2% on Wednesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 traded higher after a report said the country was preparing a record $735 billion budget for its fiscal year starting in April. The budget will account for increased social security and debt-servicing expenses. Additionally, Bank of Japan’s Governor Kazuo Ueda said that Japan’s economy will move closer to sustainable and stable 2 percent inflation in 2025, accompanied by wage increases. Markets in Hong Kong and Indonesia remain closed today.
Asian markets are trading mostly higher; Nikkei 225 surged 431.84 points or 1.09% to 39,562.27, Taiwan Weighted added 41.73 points or 0.18% to 23,261.86 and Shanghai Composite was up by 5.45 points or 0.16% to 3,398.80. However, Straits Times fell 7.57 points or 0.2% to 3,761.98, KOSPI was down by 9.57 points or 0.39% to 2,430.95.
