Asia report: Most markets rise as inflation slows in Australia

Markets across the Asia-Pacific region were in the green on Wednesday, buoyed by a continued rally on Wall Street for the second consecutive day.

Japan's benchmark index spearheaded the gains, while investors also turned their attention to Australia's first-quarter inflation figures, which slightly exceeded expectations.

“Asian stock markets are experiencing widespread gains, following positive sentiment in global markets,” said TickMill market analyst Patrick Munnelly.

“This comes after data showed a slowdown in U.S. manufacturing activity for April, leading to speculation that the US Fed may consider lowering interest rates.”

Munnelly said traders were also taking advantage of lower stock prices following recent sell-offs.

“Traders are now looking forward to upcoming economic data, such as the release of first-quarter US GDP figures and the core personal-consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, which is closely watched by the Fed as a measure of inflation.”

Markets in the green across the region, with Australia the exception

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 surged by 2.42% to reach 38,460.08, while the Topix index climbed by 1.67% to settle at 2,710.73.

Leading performers in Tokyo included Renesas Electronics, soaring by 10.54%, Nikon by 10.33%, and Tokyo Electron by 7.11%.

Mainland Chinese markets also saw positive movement, as the Shanghai Composite index rose by 0.76% to 3,044.82, while the Shenzhen Component increased by 0.74% to 9,251.13.

Among the top gains in Shanghai were GEN S Power Group, surging by 10.06%, and ARTS Group, rising by 10.01%.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index saw a notable uptick of 2.21%, reaching 17,201.27, as Li Ning Co led the gains with a 7.46% surge, followed by China Hongqiao Group at 7.01%, and China Life Insurance at 5.57%.

South Korea's Kospi index was ahead 2.01% at 2,675.75, with LG Innotek soaring 11.65%, and EcoPro Materials adding 8.53%.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 remained relatively flat, dipping marginally by 0.01% to 7,683.00.

Notable laggards included Cleanaway Waste Management, tumbling by 9.97%, and Homeco Daily Needs REIT, down by 3.54%.

Conversely, New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 index saw a positive movement, climbing by 1.21% to 11,946.43.

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare led the gains with a 5.01% increase, followed by NZX at 2.65%.

In currency markets, the dollar was last 0.07% stronger on the yen, trading at JPY 154.94, while it dipped 0.19% against the Aussie to AUD 1.5386, and weakened 0.02% on the Kiwi, changing hands at NZD 1.6853.

Regarding oil, Brent crude futures were last down 0.46% on ICE at $88.01 per barrel, and the NYMEX quote for West Texas Intermediate slipped 0.62% to $82.84.

Consumer inflation slows in Australia, producer inflation ticks higher in Japan

In economic news, fresh data showed Australia's consumer price index (CPI) continuing its trend of decelerating for the fifth consecutive quarter.

The first-quarter CPI reading showed a 3.6% increase from a year ago, marking the smallest uptick since the fourth quarter of 2021.

Despite the moderation, the reading still exceeded expectations, slightly exceeding the 3.5% increase projected by Reuters polling.

Meanwhile, in Japan, producer prices in the service sector witnessed an uptick, with a year-on-year increase of 2.3% recorded in March.

The acceleration followed a revised 2.2% gain in February.

Notably, the 2.3% figure was just 0.2 percentage points shy of reaching an eight-year high of 2.5%, observed in December last year.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.