Asia report: Most markets rise after Fed rate hike

Asia-Pacific markets showed a largely positive trend on Thursday, despite a mixed bag of results, as investors digested the US Federal Reserve’s latest hike in interest rates to a level not seen in over two decades.

Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 0.68% to close at 32,891.16, while the broader Topix index rose 0.53% to end at 2,295.14.

The gains on Tokyo’s benchmark were led by Tokuyama Corporation, which saw a 3.96% rise, followed by Nippon Paper Industries and Tokyo Electric Power Co, with advances of 3.6% and 3.39% respectively.

However, Chinese markets ended the day in the red, as the Shanghai Composite dipped 0.2% to finish at 3,216.67, while the Shenzhen Component fell 0.41% to close at 10,923.77.

Hengdian Entertainment and Beijing Dalong Weiye were the biggest losers in Shanghai, down 9.87% and 7.47% respectively.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index added 1.41% to close at 19,639.11.

Country Garden Holdings led the gains with an 11.81% surge, closely followed by Country Garden Services and Geely Automobile, which gained 9.36% and 8.57% respectively.

South Korea’s Kospi 100 rose 1.33% to 2,605.59, led by cosmetics giant Amorepacific, which soared 14.04%, and Amore Group, up by 12.8%.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 also ended in the green, gaining 0.73% to 7,455.90.

The gains in Sydney were led by Sandfire Resources and Insignia Financial, which added 9% and 6.93% respectively.

In New Zealand, the S&P/NZX 50 fell slightly by 0.01% to 11,954.11, with the losses led by Pacific Edge and Mainfreight, which fell by 10% and 2.48% respectively.

In currency markets, the dollar fell against the Japanese yen by 0.08% to trade at JPY 140.13, and also slid against the Australian and New Zealand dollars by 0.69% and 0.63% to AUD 1.4696 and NZD 1.6003 respectively.

On the commodities front, oil prices rose, with Brent crude futures last up 1% on ICE at $83.75 per barrel, and the NYMEX quote for West Texas Intermediate ahead 1.16% at $79.69 per barrel.

China's industrial profits shrink for sixth straight month; Hong Kong follows US with rate hike

In economic news, a downward trend in China's industrial sector looked to be continuing unabated, with profits registering a decrease for the sixth month in a row.

According to China's National Bureau of Statistics, year-to-date earnings within industry had dropped by 16.8%.

The drop for the month of June was marked at 8.3%, following a notable 18.8% decline from January to May.

Elsewhere, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) decided to increase its interest rates by 25 basis points, taking the new rate to 5.75%.

The move echoed the latest rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve overnight, marking Hong Kong's steadfast commitment to maintain its monetary policy in sync with that of the U.S.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.