Melbourne, Australia
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Asia-Pacific markets were mixed Wednesday, breaking ranks with Wall Street after the S&P 500 closed at a record high.
The broad market index gained 0.41% to finish at 6,978.60, supported by gains in Apple and Microsoft.
Asian markets mostly extended Tuesday’s gains, with Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 reversed gains and fell 0.22%, potentially snapping a three-day winning streak.
Australia saw its headline inflation come in at 3.6% for the last quarter of 2025, its highest level of inflation in six quarters.
South Korea’s Kospi and Kosdaq continued to push fresh records, gaining 1.61% and 3.5% respectively.
However, Japan’s Nikkei 225 slumped 0.63%, while the Topix fell 1.01%.
Late Tuesday, the yen strengthened to its highest level in almost three months against the dollar, touching a low of 152.08 amid intervention expectations swirling around the currency.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was up 0.95% in early trade, while the CSI 300 index on mainland China was flat.
Overnight in the U.S., the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.91%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average broke ranks, losing 408.99 points, or 0.83%, and settling at 49,003.4.
S&P 500 futures were near the flatline ahead of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision and earnings reports from major tech companies.
The central bank is widely expected to keep its benchmark interest rate steady at a target range of 3.5% to 3.75%, but traders will be seeking hints on longer-term changes to monetary policy.
—CNBC’s Sean Conlon and Pia Singh contributed to this report.
