CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stock markets are trading mostly higher on Wednesday, despite the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight, boosted by the continuing record run by Japan's Nikkei. Report showing US consumer prices increased in line with estimates, while core consumer prices rose by slightly less than expected, has added to recent optimism about the outlook for interest rates. Asian markets closed mostly higher on Tuesday.
While the US Fed is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged at its January meeting, the central bank is still seen as likely to cut rates by at least another quarter point in the coming months.
Australian shares are trading modestly lower on Wednesday after opening in the green, reversing some of the gains in the previous two sessions, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 falling below the 8,800 level, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight, with weakness in gold miners, financial and technology stocks.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 13.60 points or 0.15 percent to 8,794.90, after touching a high of 8,838.30 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 13.30 points or 0.15 percent to 9,125.20. Australian stocks ended notably higher on Tuesday.
Among major miners, BHP Group and Rio Tinto are gaining almost 1 percent each, while Mineral Resources and Fortescue are edging down 0.1 percent each.
Oil stocks are mixed. Santos and Woodside Energy are gaining almost 2 percent each, while Beach energy is adding more than 1 percent. Origin Energy is losing almost 1 percent.
In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block is declining almost 3 percent, Xero is slipping 1.5 percent and WiseTech Global is losing almost 1 percent, while Zip is adding almost 1 percent. Appen is flat.
Among the big four banks, Westpac, National Australia bank and Commonwealth Bank are losing almost 1 percent each. ANZ Banking is edging down 0.3 percent.
Among gold miners, Evolution Mining and Resolute Mining are losing almost 1 percent each, while Northern Star Resources and Genesis Minerals are edging down 0.2 to 0.5 percent each. Newmont is advancing more than 2 percent.
In economic news, the total number of building approvals issued in Australia was up a seasonally adjusted 15.2 percent on month in November, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday - coming in at 18,406. That follows the 6.1 percent monthly contraction in October.
On a yearly basis, approvals jumped 20.2 percent after sinking 1.8 percent in the previous month. The value of total building work approved rose 12.8 percent in November to A$18.38 billion, after a 1.8 percent October fall.
In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.669 on Wednesday.
The Japanese stock market is trading sharply higher on Wednesday, extending the sharp gains in the previous two sessions, despite the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is moving above the 54,200 level, with gains is exporters, financial and technology stocks.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 54,413.92, up 864.76 points or 1.61 percent, after touching a high of 54,447.10 earlier. Japanese stocks ended sharply higher on Tuesday.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is losing almost 3 percent, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is gaining more than 3 percent. Among automakers, Honda is gaining more than 1 percent, while Toyota is losing more than 1 percent.
In the tech space, Advantest is surging almost 6 percent, Screen Holdings is adding more than 1 percent and Tokyo Electron is advancing more than2 percent.
In the banking sector, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is edging up 0.5 percent, while Mizuho Financial and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial are gaining almost 1 percent each.
Among the major exporters, Mitsubishi Electric, Sony, Panasonic and Canon are all gaining almost 1 percent each.
Among other major gainers, Yaskawa Electric is surging more than 4 percent, while Lasertec, Fanuc, Shiseido, Disco and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries are gaining almost 4 percent each. Minebea Mitsumi, Japan Steel Works, Taiyo Yuden and IHI are advancing more than 3 percent each, while Hoya, FUJIFILM and SMC are adding almost 3 percent each.
Conversely, Daiichi Sankyo is losing almost 3 percent.
In economic news, the M2 money stock in Japan was up 1.7 percent on year in December, the Bank of Japan said on Wednesday - coming in at 1,278.6 trillion yen. That was shy of expectations for an increase of 1.9 percent but steady from the November reading following a downward revision from 1.8 percent.
The M3 money stock was up 1.1 percent on year at 1,627.1 trillion yen, while L money added 2.1 percent to 2m240.9 trillion yen. M2 was up 1.7 percent on year for the fourth quarter of last year, and up 1.2 percent for all of 2025.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 159 yen-range on Wednesday.
Elsewhere in Asia, New Zealand, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Taiwan and Indonesia are higher by between 0.1 to 0.9 percent each, while South Korea and Singapore are down 0.2 percent each.
On the Wall Street, stocks showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading day on Tuesday after recovering from initial weakness to end Monday's session modestly higher.
The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before eventually ending the day in negative territory. The Dow slid 398.21 points or 0.8 percent to 49,191.99, the Nasdaq edged down 24.03 points or 0.1 percent to 23,709.87 and the S&P 500 dipped 13.53 points or 0.2 percent to 6,963.74.
Meanwhile, the major European markets ended the day narrowly mixed. While the German DAX Index crept up by 0.1, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index closed just below the unchanged line and the French CAC 40 Index edged down by 0.1 percent.
Crude oil prices surged on Tuesday, extending a recent surge amid increasing geopolitical risks due to escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran, which have raised output-and-supply concerns. West Texas Intermediate crude for February delivery was up $1.55 or 2.61 percent at $61.05 per barrel.
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