A restaurant’s windows at The Peak are taped up in Hong Kong on August 24, 2022, as Hong Kong Observatory issued a Typhoon Signal No. 8 earlier in the morning. HKEX canceled its morning session accordingly to the T8 issuance. (Photo by ISAAC LAWRENCE / AFP) (Photo by ISAAC LAWRENCE/AFP via Getty Images)
Isaac Lawrence | Afp | Getty Images
Markets in the Asia-Pacific traded mostly higher ahead of the Jackson Hole symposium in the United States, while Hong Kong’s session resumed in the afternoon after trading was halted due to a typhoon warning.
The Hang Seng index was up 3.63% to 19,968.38 at the close, pumped higher by tech stocks. Alibaba jumped 8.75%, Tencent was up 4.84%, and JD.com rose 11%. The Hang Seng Tech index closed up 6.01%.
In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite was up 0.97% at 3,246.25 at the close, while the Shenzhen Component edged higher to 12,104.03.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended the session 0.58% higher at 28,479.01, while the Topix was up 0.48% at 1,976.6. Australia’s S&P/ASX was also up by 0.71% at 7,048.1.
In South Korea, the Kospi rose 1.22% to 2,477.26 and the Kosdaq was up 1.79% at 807.37 as the Bank of Korea raised its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points.
U.S. stock futures were slightly up after all three major averages ended higher during the daily trading session, as investors await more clarity on the Federal Reserve’s fight against inflation.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained 75 points, or 0.22%. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 0.36% and 0.35%, respectively.
In currencies, the U.S. dollar rose as high as 109.11 overnight before falling back to around 108.6.
“Expectations of a hawkish message from FOMC Chair Powell at Jackson Hole will likely keep upward pressure on the USD in the run‑up to his speech on Friday,” Commonwealth Bank of Australia’s Senior Economist and Currency Strategist Kristina Clifton said in a report.
Hong Kong is slated to report July’s trade data later in the afternoon.
