Asian equities rose sharply on Wednesday, tracking a relief rally on Wall Street and as U.S. inflation data delivered no nasty surprises, reinforcing hopes the Federal Reserve will likely go for a smaller rate hike when it meets next week.
Investors piled back into stocks in U.S. markets overnight as fears about contagion in the banking sector following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) last week eased.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) was 1.44% higher, having slid 1.7% on Tuesday after SVB’s collapse triggered heavy selling by investors in the last few trading sessions.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index (.AXJO) rose 0.33% in early trading, while Japan’s Nikkei (.N225) was mostly flat.
Chinese shares (.SSEC) were 0.46% higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index (.HSI) rose 1.4%.
Data on Wednesday showed China’s industrial output in the first two months of 2023 rose 2.4% from the year earlier, accelerating from a 1.3% annual rise seen in December. The data slightly missed forecasts for a 2.6% rise in a Reuters poll of analysts.
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