CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stocks ended mixed on Wednesday as Middle East unrest deepened, and focus shifted to the Federal Reserve's interest-rate decision later in the day.
Risk sentiment worsened after reports claimed that the U.S. may consider joining Israel in striking Iranian nuclear sites.
Adding to the speculation, U.S. President Donald Trump demanded 'unconditional surrender' from Tehran, warning that U.S. patience was 'wearing thin' and that America held 'complete and total control over Iranian skies'.
The Federal Reserve is widely expected to leave rates unchanged later today, but investors will scrutinize updated economic projections for clues to future moves.
The dollar wavered against major currencies in Asian trade while oil prices eased after rallying 4 percent in the previous session. Gold was marginally lower in limited sideways range trading.
China's Shanghai Composite index finished marginally higher at 3,388.81 as speeches by top financial regulators at the opening of the annual Lujiazui Forum delivered few fresh policy signals.
Hong Kong led regional losses, with the benchmark Hang Seng index tumbling 1.12 percent to 23,710.69 amid growing fears of U.S.-Iran conflict.
Japanese markets rose sharply to hit a four-month high as a weaker yen boosted export-related stocks.
The yen hovered close to 145.4 per dollar, stabilizing after three consecutive losing sessions as data showed Japan's exports fell in May for the first time in eight months, highlighting the impact of U.S. tariffs.
April's core machinery orders dropped and manufacturing sentiment worsened in June, pointing to subdued domestic spending.
The Nikkei average jumped 0.90 percent to 38,885.15 while the broader Topix index settled 0.77 percent higher at 2,808.35.
Seoul stocks rose notably to end higher for a third day running, led by big gains in market heavyweight Samsung Electronics and IT shares after the government unveiled plans to make a massive investment in artificial intelligence (AI).
The Kospi average rose 0.74 percent to 2,972.19. Naver soared nearly 18 percent as the presidential office appointed Ha Jung-woo, a tech expert from the company, as its first senior presidential secretary for AI affairs.
Australian markets ended slightly lower amid rising geopolitical tension and ahead of key domestic jobs data.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.12 percent to 8,531.20, with miners leading declines as iron ore prices continued to retreat. The broader All Ordinaries index ended down 0.15 percent at 8,757.90.
Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index ended little changed with a negative bias as 12,627.32.
Overnight, U.S. stocks fell notably as the Israel-Iran conflict raged for a fifth day and weak retail sales, housing and industrial output data lifted bonds ahead of the Federal Reserve decision.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite declined 0.9 percent, the S&P 500 fell 0.8 percent and the Dow gave up 0.7 percent.
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