CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stock markets are trading mixed on Wednesday, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight, as crude oil-linked inflation concerns eased following reports of a possible peace deal between the U.S. and Iran, mediated by Pakistan and Qatar that satisfies the needs of both the warring nations. Asian markets closed mostly lower on Tuesday.
Negotiators from Qatar and Pakistan have presented a compromise proposal to end the U.S.-Iran war, with key tenets including the U.S. allowing the release of Iranian funds frozen in Qatar and Iran permitting a visit to Iranian nuclear sites by experts from International Atomic Energy Agency.
The proposal is said to have received positive responses from Washington and Tehran.
Australian shares are trading slightly lower on Wednesday after opening in the green, extending the losses in the previous session, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 falling to near the 8,800 level, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight, with a mixed performance across most sectors.
The markets slipped into the red following hawkish comments from RBA Deputy Governor Andrew Hauser saying tighter monetary policy was working, but warned that the inflation outlook remained 'materially worse' partly due to elevated oil prices.
Markets now price in a 44 percent chance of a November interest rate hike, up from 30 percent on Monday.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 10.80 points or 0.12 percent to 8,806.10, after touching a high of 8,841.90 and a low of 8,795.90 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 11.10 points or 0.12 percent to 8,933.10. Australian stocks ended modestly lower on Tuesday.
Among major miners, BHP Group and Rio Tinto are losing more than 1 percent each, while Fortescue is edging down 0.4 percent. Mineral Resources is edging up 0.3 percent.
Oil stocks are mostly higher. Santos is edging up 0.3 percent and Origin Energy is gaining almost 1 percent, while Woodside Energy is losing almost 1 percent. Beach energy is advancing almost 4 percent after reporting record sales revenue and higher production for the first quarter.
In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block and Xero are gaining more than 1 percent each, while WiseTech Global is edging up 0.3 percent. Appen is edging down 0.5 percent and Zip is declining almost 4 percent.
Among the big four banks, National Australia bank is gaining almost 1 percent, while Westpac and ANZ Banking are edging up 0.1 to 0.3 percent each. Commonwealth Bank is edging down 0.1 percent.
Among gold miners, Evolution Mining, Genesis Minerals and Newmont are losing more than 1 percent each, while Northern Star Resources is advancing almost 3 percent and Resolute Mining is gaining almost 2 percent.
In other news, shares in NextDC are plummeting almost 40 percent after slashing guidance on power delays at its M3 data centre in Melbourne's West Footscray.
In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.702 on Wednesday.
The Japanese stock market is trading significantly higher on Wednesday, reversing some of the losses in the previous two sessions, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is moving above the 64,800 level, with gains in exporters, financial and technology stocks partially offset by weakness in automaker stocks.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 64,823.55, up 748.13 points or 1.17 percent, after touching a high of 65,404.63 earlier. Japanese stocks ended sharply lower on Tuesday.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is gaining more than 3 percent, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is edging down 0.5 percent. Among automakers, Honda is edging down 0.3 percent and Toyota is also edging down 0.2 percent.
In the tech space, Advantest, Screen Holdings and Tokyo Electron are gaining almost 1 percent each.
In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial, Mizuho Financial and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial are all gaining more than 2 percent each.
Among the major exporters, Mitsubishi Electric is gaining almost 2 percent and Panasonic is advancing more than 3 percent, while Canon and Sony are edging up 0.3 to 0.4 percent each.
Among other major gainers, Ibiden is advancing more than 4 percent, while Sumco, JX Advanced Metals, Hoya, Japan Exchange Group, Sumitomo Pharma and Taiyo Yuden are gaining almost 4 percent each. Resona Holdings, Murata Manufacturing and TDK are adding more than 3 percent each. Mitsui Kinzoku, Kioxia Holdings and Fujikura are up almost 3 percent each.
Conversely, there are no other major losers.
In economic news, Japan posted a merchandise trade deficit of 536.6 billion yen in September, the Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday. That missed forecasts for a shortfall of 181.0 billion yen following the 1,111.9 billion yen deficit in August.
Exports were up 16.7 percent on year at 10.972 trillion yen, shy of expectations for an increase of 20.1 percent and down from 19.3 percent in the previous month. Imports climbed an annual 18.9 percent to 11.508 trillion yen versus forecasts for an increase of 19.6 percent and down from 28.0 percent a month earlier.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 158 yen-range on Wednesday.
Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea is surging 3.9 percent, while New Zealand, Singapore and Taiwan are higher by between 0.5 and 1.5 percent each. Indonesia is down 1.3 percent, while China, Hong Kong and Malaysia are lower by between 0.1 and 0.3 percent each.
On Wall Street, stocks gave back ground over the course of the trading day on Tuesday after recovering from an early pullback and moving mostly higher early in the session. The tech-heavy Nasdaq pulled back slightly below the unchanged line, although the Dow held on to a strong gain.
The Dow reached its best closing level in over a month, jumping 529.85 points or 1 percent to 52,495.88. The S&P 500 also rose 21.84 points or 0.3 percent to 7,712.57, but the Nasdaq edged down 6.07 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 26,424.82.
The major European markets also moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index fell by 0.4 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index dipped by 0.3 percent and the German DAX Index edged down by 0.1 percent.
Crude oil prices dropped on Tuesday following reports that Qatar and Pakistan are pushing for a peace deal between the U.S. and Iran. West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery was down $1.76 or 1.82 percent at $101.84 per barrel.
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