Asian stock markets ended higher on Wednesday, with investors closely watching the outcome of the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy meeting. The Nikkei in Tokyo closed unchanged at 27,346.88, with a slight gain of 19.77 points, or +0.07%.
In Australia, both the S&P/ASX 200 and the All Ordinaries rebounded to nine-month highs, closing at 7,501.70 and 7,709.70 respectively, with gains of 25.00 points and 23.60 points or +0.33% and +0.31% respectively, driven by a rise in real estate stocks.
The Shanghai Composite in China closed up at 3,284.92, with a gain of 29.25 points, or +0.90%, as the country’s manufacturing sector saw a recovery in January.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng closed higher at 22,072.18, with a gain of 229.85 points, or +1.05%, in response to the Dow Jones’ gains in New York, which closed higher the previous day after a slowdown in US labor costs was reported in the fourth quarter of 2022.
In South Korea, the KOSPI rose cautiously to 2,449.8 points, with a gain of 24.72 points, or +1.02%, ahead of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision.
Meanwhile, in Thailand, the SET closed higher at 1,685.75 points, with a gain of 14.29 points or +0.85%, supported by leading retail and electronics groups.