Asian Markets Track Global Markets Higher

(RTTNews) - Asian stock markets are trading mostly higher on Wednesday, following the broadly positive cues from global markets overnight, as data showing a drop in US consumer prices in February contributed significantly to the positive mood in the market, allaying fears of an accelerated rate hike from the US Fed. Asian markets closed mostly lower on Tuesday.

The assurance from the US regulators that there won't be a relapse of the financial crisis from 15 years ago following the collapse of US lender Silicon Valley Bank over the weekend also helped lift sentiment.

The Australian stock market is modestly higher on Wednesday, snapping a four-session losing streak, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 staying above the 7,000 mark, following the broadly positive cues from global markets overnight, with a slight recovery in the markets after the two-day rout in the financial and technology sectors. Traders are also picking up stocks at a bargain after the recent losing streak.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 44.30 points or 0.63 percent to 7,053.20, after touching a high of 7,066.50 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 46.40 points or 0.64 percent to 7,247.50. Australian stocks ended sharply lower on Tuesday.

Among major miners, BHP Group and Mineral Resources are gaining almost 1 percent each, while Fortescue Metals and Rio Tinto are adding more than 1 percent each. OZ Minerals is edging down 0.1 percent. Oil stocks are mostly lower. Woodside Energy is losing more than 1 percent, Santos is down almost 1 percent and Origin Energy is edging down 0.4 percent. Beach energy is edging up 0.2 percent.

In the tech space, Xero is gaining more than 2 percent, Zip is adding more than 1 percent, Afterpay owner Block is advancing almost 4 percent and WiseTech Global is up almost 2 percent, while Appen is losing more 1 percent. Among the big four banks, National Australia Bank, Westpac and ANZ Banking are edging up 0.3 to 0.5 percent each, while Commonwealth Bank is edging down 0.3 percent.

Among gold miners, Newcrest Mining is losing almost 1 percent, Gold Road Resources is down 2.5 percent, Northern Star Resources is slipping almost 3 percent and Evolution Mining is declining more than 5 percent, while Resolute Mining is gaining almost 1 percent.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.670 on Wednesday.

The Japanese stock market is modestly higher on Wednesday, snapping a three-session losing streak, with the Nikkei 225 moving to a tad below the 27,300 level, following the broadly positive cues from global markets overnight, aided by the recovery in financial and technology stocks after the two-day rout in the sectors amid the collapse of US lender Silicon Valley Bank over the weekend.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 27,298.01, up 75.97 points or 0.28 percent, after touching a high of 27,424.94 earlier. Japanese stocks ended sharply lower on Tuesday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is losing more than 1 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is down 1.5 percent. Among automakers, Honda is edging up 0.5 percent, while Toyota is edging up 0.3 percent.

In the tech space, Screen Holdings is gaining more than 2 percent, Advantest is adding almost 2 percent and Tokyo Electron is up almost 1 percent.

In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is gaining 2.5 percent, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is surging more than 4 percent and Mizuho Financial is adding more than 2 percent.

Among the major exporters, Canon and Panasonic are gaining more than 1 percent each, while Mitsubishi Electric is adding almost 1 percent. Sony is edging down 0.2 percent.

Among the other major gainers, Kobe Steel, Resona Holdings and Tokio Marine Holdings are gaining almost 5 percent each, while Aozora Bank, Fukuoka Financial, Konica Minolta, MS&AD Insurance and Chiba Bank are adding almost 4 percent each. T&D Holdings, Dai-ichi Life, Sekisui House, Sompo Holdings and Japan Post Holdings are advancing more than 3 percent each.

Conversely, Keio is losing almost 3 percent.

In economic news, members of the Bank of Japan's Monetary Policy Board said that the country's economy is still being hampered by high commodity prices, but overall still shows signs of steady improvement, minutes from the central bank's January 17-18 meeting revealed on Wednesday.

At the meeting, the BoJ kept its interest rates unchanged at -0.1 percent and modified some of its lending programs. The bank will also continue to purchase a necessary amount of JGBs without setting an upper limit so that 10-year JGB yields will remain at around zero percent.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the 134 yen-range on Wednesday.

Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong is surging 2.3 percent, while South Korea and Singapore are up 1.4 and 1.8 percent, respectively. New Zealand, China, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Taiwan are higher by between 0.2 and 0.9 percent each.

On Wall Street, stocks rallied on Tuesday, bouncing back from recent losses, thanks to hectic bargain hunting, particularly in the banking sector. The assurance from the regulators that there won't be a relapse of the financial crisis from 15 years ago helped lift sentiment.

The major averages all ended on the positive side. The Dow ended with a gain of 336.26 points or 1.06 percent at 32,155.40, snapping a five-day losing streak. The S&P 500 climbed 64.80 points or 1.68 percent at 3,920.56, while the Nasdaq settled at 11,428.15, gaining 239.31 points or 2.14 percent.

The major European markets all also moved to the upside on the day. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 advanced 1.06 percent, Germany's DAX surged 1.75 percent, and France's CAC 40 climbed 1.82 percent.

Crude oil prices fell sharply to a nine-week low on Tuesday amid concerns a fresh financial crisis following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank could significantly hurt demand. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April sank $3.47 or 4.7 percent at $71.33 a barrel.