Stocks in Asia-Pacific were mixed on Wednesday as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) raised its growth forecast for the global economy this year.
The Nikkei 225 regained 89.03 points, or 0.3%, to 28,635.21.
The Japanese yen traded at 103.66 per U.S. dollar, weaker than levels below 103.5 against the greenback seen last week.
The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong lost 93.73 points, or 0.3%, to 29,297.53, with shares of Chinese tech giant Alibaba rising 2.8%.
In its latest World Economic Outlook published Tuesday, the IMF now expects the global economy to grow 5.5% this year. That’s a 0.3-percentage-point increase from October’s forecasts.
Australian markets faded, as that country’s consumer price index rose 0.9% quarter-on-quarter in the December quarter, according to data released by the country’s Bureau of Statistics.
The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7739 after rising from levels around $0.768 yesterday.
CHINA
In Shanghai, the CSI 300 recaptured 93.73 points, or 0.3%, to 5,528.
China’s industrial profits rose 4.1% year-on-year in 2020, the country’s National Bureau of Statistics announced Wednesday. For December, industrial profits in China soared 20.1% year-on-year.
In other markets
In Korea, the Kospi index deducted 17.75 points, or 0.6%, to 3,122.56
In Singapore, the Straits Times restocked 13.11 points, or 0.5%, to 2,958.63
In Taiwan, the Taiex Index recovered 42.6 points, or 0.3%, to 15,701.45
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 added 50.54 points, or 0.4%, to 13,374.
In Australia, the ASX 200 returned after a holiday to lose 44.15 points, or 0.7%, to 6,780.57.