Asian Shares Mostly Lower; Kospi Rallies Led By Tech Stocks

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks ended on a cautious note Wednesday despite a strong rally on Wall Street overnight driven by improved U.S. consumer confidence data and a global bond surge.

As trade tensions ease, investors awaited cues from Nvidia's earnings and the release of minutes from the Federal Reserve May meeting.

The dollar held gains and gold ticked higher to trade above $3,310 per ounce ahead of key U.S. PCE inflation reading due this week.

Oil inched up on Venezuelan supply risks and ahead of on OPEC+ meeting, expected to decide on increasing output.

China's Shanghai Composite index finished marginally lower at 3,339.93 after a large explosion at a chemical plant in eastern China.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index dipped 0.53 percent to 23,258.31 despite Xiaomi Corp. reporting better-than-expected revenue in the March quarter.

Japanese shares ended little changed and the yen wobbled in volatile trading as a weak government bond auction sparked a sell-off in the country's bond market. Tech stocks ended mostly higher ahead of Nvidia's earnings, with Advantest rising 1.6 percent.

Nippon Steel Corp fell 1.5 percent. The company is considering handing a "golden share" to the U.S. government as a way to proceed with its acquisition of U.S. Steel, the Nikkei reported.

Seoul stocks ended sharply higher, led by technology stocks, The Kospi average climbed 1.25 percent to 2,670.15 as global trade tensions eased and a survey showed business sentiment in the country improved to a 10-month high in May. Samsung Electronics soared 3.7 percent and SK Hynix surged 2.7 percent.

Australian markets ended slightly lower after the release of stronger-than-expected inflation data for April. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.13 percent to 8,396.90, dragged down by banks and miners. The broader All Ordinaries index ended little changed at 8,624.90.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's S&P/NZX-50 index tumbled 1.75 percent to 12,362.26, hitting its lowest level in over three weeks as the country's central bank cut its benchmark rate by 25 basis points and flagged a slightly deeper easing cycle than previously forecast, highlighting concerns about the growth outlook.

Overnight, U.S. stocks rose sharply as President Trump agreed to delay a threatened 50 percent tariffs on imports from the European Union and data showed U.S. consumer confidence rebounded sharply in May after a prolonged decline.

The Dow jumped 1.8 percent and the S&P 500 rallied 2.1 percent to snap four-day losing streaks, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite soared 2.5 percent.