Shares in Asia-Pacific were higher in Wednesday trade, as Chinese stocks saw a strong rebound following recent heavy losses.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index zoomed 415.53 points, or 1.6%, to 25,762.01.
The Japanese yen traded at 118.34 per U.S. dollar, still weaker as compared with levels below 116.1 seen against the greenback last week.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index made up for some of its recent heavy losses, jumping 1,672.42 points, or 9.1%, to 20,087.50, its best day since Oct. 30, 2008, when it gained 12.82%.
Still, the benchmark index is down more than 2% so far this week after seeing heavy losses on Monday and Tuesday.
Chinese tech stocks in Hong Kong saw big gains, as shares of Chinese tech giant Tencent rose 23.2%, Alibaba soared 27.3% and NetEase jumped 23.4%.
The Australian dollar was at $0.7225 after recently slipping from above $0.72.
CHINA
In Shanghai, the CSI 300 regained 172.27 points, or 4.3%, to 4,156.08.
The bulk of the gains Wednesday came after a Chinese state media report signaled support for Chinese stocks. U.S. and Chinese regulators are progressing toward a cooperation plan on U.S.-listed Chinese stocks, the report said, citing a financial stability meeting Wednesday chaired by Vice Premier Liu He.
The report said Beijing supported Chinese stock listings overseas, and would work towards stability in Hong Kong’s financial market as well as the struggling real estate sector.
Chinese tech stocks have been under pressure in recent days amid multiple concerns, including a Wall Street Journal report that Tencent could face a record fine for violating anti-money laundering rules.
Fears of U.S.-listed Chinese firms being delisted stateside also recently resurfaced after the Securities and Exchange Commission identified five U.S.-listed American depositary receipts of Chinese companies that failed to comply with the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, further weighing on investor sentiment.
The sharp reversal comes as investors continue to monitor the pandemic situation in the country, with China grappling with its most severe COVID outbreak since the height of the pandemic in 2020, with major cities scrambling to limit business activity.
In other markets,
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index progressed 54.86 points, or 1.7%, to 3,290.90
In Korea, the Kospi index recovered 37.7 points, or 1.4%, to 2,659.23
In Taiwan, the Taiex index regained 14.77 points, or 0.1%, to 16,940.83.
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 restocked 72.37 points, or 0.6%, to 11,874.11.
In Australia, the ASX 200 gained 77.79 points, or 1.1%, to 7,175.24.
