Asian Markets Track Wall Street Higher

(RTTNews) - Asian stock markets are trading mostly higher on Wednesday, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, as traders across most markets are picking up stocks at a bargain after the recent strong sell-off amid fears about the world's largest economy slipping into recession. Asian markets closed mostly higher on Tuesday.

Australian shares are trading notably higher on Wednesday after opening in the red, adding to the gains in the previous session, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 staying below the 7,700 level, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, with traders picking up stocks at a bargain after the recent sell-off.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 35.20 points or 0.46 percent to 7,715.80, after hitting a low of 7,643.30 and a high of 7,716.30 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 37.00 points or 0.47 percent to 7,927.10. Australian stocks ended modestly higher on Tuesday.

Among major miners, BHP Group is losing almost 1 percent, while Rio Tinto, Fortescue Metals and Mineral Resources are declining more than 1 percent each.

Oil stocks are mixed. Origin Energy is losing almost 1 percent and Santos is edging down 0.4 percent, while Woodside Energy is gaining almost 1 percent. Beach energy is flat. In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block is losing more than 4 percent, Zip is declining more than 2 percent and Appen is slipping almost 4 percent, while WiseTech Global and Xero are edging down 0.2 to 0.3 percent each.

Among the big four banks, National Australia Bank and Westpac are losing almost 1 percent each, while Commonwealth Bank is edging down 0.5 percent. ANZ Banking is edging up 0.2 percent.

Among gold miners, Evolution Mining and Northern Star Resources are losing more than 1 percent each, while Gold Road Resources declining almost 2 percent. Newmont is gaining almost 1 percent. Resolute Mining is flat.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.654 on Wednesday.

The Japanese stock market is sharply higher on Wednesday after opening sharply in the red, giving adding to the strong gains in the previous session, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is moving well above the 35,400 level, with traders picking up stocks at a bargain after the recent sell-off.

Traders also react to comments from the Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Shinichi Uichida, who said they will not raise interest rates if the market is unstable.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 35,464.61, up 789.15 points or 2.28 percent, after hitting a low of 33,739.46 and a high of 35,849.77 earlier. Japanese stocks ended sharply higher on Tuesday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is gaining more than 6 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is edging up 0.2 percent. Among automakers, Honda is gaining more than 2 percent and Toyota is adding more than 1 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest is edging down 0.1 percent and Screen Holdings is losing almost 1 percent, while Tokyo Electron is gaining almost 2 percent.

In the banking sector, Mizuho Financial is soaring more than 8 percent, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is surging almost 9 percent and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is skyrocketing almost 11 percent.

Among the major exporters, Canon is soaring almost 10 percent, Panasonic is gaining almost 2 percent and Mitsubishi Electric is adding almost 5 percent, while Sony is edging down 0.5 percent.

Among other major gainers, Disco is skyrocketing more than 13 percent and Nichirei is soaring more than 12 percent, while Canon and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries are surging almost 11 percent each. Tokyo Electric Power is gaining more than 10 percent and Tokio Marine is adding more than 9 percent, while Resona Holdings, Fujikura and Nissui are up almost 9 percent each. Yokogawa Electric is rising more than 8 percent, while Sumitomo and Socionext are advancing almost 8 percent each.

Conversely, Daikin Industries plummeting more than 10 percent and Ricoh is plunging more than 7 percent, while NTT Data and Mitsui Chemicals are declining more than 6 percent each. Furukawa Electric is losing more than 5 percent.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the higher 146 yen-range on Wednesday.

Elsewhere in Asia, Taiwan is soaring 3.6 percent, South Korea is surging 2.7 percent, Hong Kong is adding 1.4 percent and Singapore is up 1.3 percent, while New Zealand, China, Malaysia and Indonesia are higher by between 0.2 and 0.8 percent each. On the Wall Street, stocks closed higher on Tuesday, recovering well after three successive days of losses, as investors shrugged off fears of a recession and geopolitical concerns, and chose to indulge in some buying at reduced levels. Investors also reacted positively to the latest batch of corporate earnings news.

The major averages all closed on a firm note. The Dow ended up 294.39 points or 0.76 percent at 38,997.66. The S&P 500 closed up by $53.70 points or 1.04 percent at 5,240.03, while the Nasdaq settled higher by 166.77 points or 1.03 percent at 16,366.85.

Meanwhile, the major European markets ended mixed on the day. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 advanced 0.23 percent and Germany's DAX edged down 0.09 percent, and France's CAC 40 lost 0.27 percent.

Crude oil prices settled modestly higher on Tuesday, snapping a four-session losing streak, as the shutdown of Libya's 270,000 barrel per day Sharara oil field offered mild support. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for September ended up $0.26 or 0.36 percent at $73.20 a barrel.