Asian Shares Mixed Ahead Of Nvidia Earnings And Powell's Speech

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks ended mixed on Wednesday as investors awaited Nvidia's earnings as well as Fed Chair Jerome Powell's highly anticipated speech this week for directional cues.

Oil prices were range-bound in Asian trade while gold ticked higher on dollar weakness.

Chinese shares tumbled after staging a sudden rally late Tuesday on bargain hunting following recent slumps. The benchmark Shanghai Composite index slumped 1.34 percent to 3,078.40.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index edged up 0.31 percent to 17,845.92, reversing early losses. Tech company Baidu surged 4.4 percent after quarterly revenue beat estimates. Japanese shares advanced after a survey showed factory activity in the country shrank at a slower pace in August.

The Nikkei average rose 0.48 percent to 32,010.26, extending gains for a third consecutive session led by technology stocks.

Banks underperformed after S&P Global followed Moody's in cutting its credit ratings and outlook on multiple U.S. regional banks.

The broader Topix index ended half a percent higher at 2,277.05. Semiconductor-making equipment maker Shibaura Mechatronics plummeted 9.8 percent on reports that its top shareholders, including Toshiba, would sell its shares in the market.

Seoul shares ended lower, with the Kospi average falling 0.41 percent to 2,505.50. LG Energy Solution led losses to close 2.6 percent lower while leading cosmetics firm AmorePacific Corp rallied 2.9 percent.

Australian markets eked out modest gains, with heavyweight miners and financials leading the surge.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index inched up 0.38 percent to 7,148.40 while the broader All Ordinaries index closed 0.29 percent higher at 7,367.60.

Retail giant Woolworths soared 3.5 percent after reporting higher annual profit. Oil & gas explorer Santos fell over 1 percent after posting a 37 percent slump in its first-half profit.

Investors shrugged off the results of a survey showing that the manufacturing sector in Australia contracted at a faster rate in August.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index climbed 0.75 percent to 11,571.93 despite data showing an unexpectedly large decline in New Zealand retail sales in the second quarter.

U.S. stocks ended mixed overnight as disappointing housing data helped the 10-year Treasury yield to ease from a fresh 16-year high hit earlier in the global day.

Banking stocks were sold off after S&P Global Ratings downgraded several regional banks by one notch.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite finished marginally higher, while the S&P 500 eased 0.3 percent and the Dow shed half a percent.