Asia-Pacific Markets Rise as Wall Street Rally Takes a Breather

Asia-Pacific markets rise as Wall Street pauses; Nikkei dips on exports, while China, Hong Kong, and Australia gain ahead of data.

Asia-Pacific stock markets edged mostly higher on Wednesday, buoyed by regional optimism even as Wall Street’s powerful rally paused after a six-day winning streak.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 was a notable laggard, slipping 0.28%, weighed down by fresh data showing a continued decline in exports for the second straight month. The ongoing impact of U.S. tariffs under President Donald Trump’s administration has added further pressure on Japan’s trade-reliant economy.

On the upside, China’s Shanghai Composite gained 0.37%, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.71%, bolstered by strong buying in property and tech stocks. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.55%, while South Korea’s Kospi and Kosdaq posted gains of 0.58% and 0.95%, respectively.

Market sentiment was also influenced by anticipation ahead of the Bank of Indonesia’s upcoming policy announcement. The central bank has held its key interest rate at 5.75% since January after two cuts in late 2024 and early 2025.

Asia-Pacific Markets Climb as Wall Street Rally Takes a Breather

Economists at HSBC expect the easing cycle to resume as economic growth stalls and the rupiah continues to weaken. “Given growth weakness, we believe it’s time to restart the easing cycle in May,” the analysts said in a note.

Meanwhile, U.S. futures suggested a subdued start on Wall Street. Futures for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 each slipped 0.2%, while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell 93 points, or 0.2%.

On Tuesday, major U.S. indexes ended lower as enthusiasm around tech stocks began to cool. The S&P 500 declined 0.39% to 5,940.46, the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.38% to 19,142.71, and the Dow Jones dropped 114.83 points to finish at 42,677.24. Leading the pullback were chipmakers and megacap tech names: Nvidia slid 0.9%, while Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and AMD all closed in the red.

In commodities, prices moved higher across the board. Gold climbed 0.39% to $3,303.35, and silver advanced 0.69% to $33.28. Crude oil prices rose sharply ahead of the weekly U.S. inventory data, with Brent crude up 1.29% to $66.58 per barrel and WTI also gaining 1.29% to $63.06.

In bond markets, yields remained steady. The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield held at 4.506%, while the U.K. 10-year stood at 4.6980%, and Germany’s benchmark yield was 2.5990%.

In Canada, inflation data came in as expected, with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) falling 0.1% month-over-month, aligning with forecasts.

Investors are closely watching the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s crude oil inventory report, due at 02:30 PM GMT, which may influence energy markets further.

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