Asian shares were mixed Tuesday after a late drop left major Wall Street indexes mostly lower.
Tokyo was closed Tuesday for a holiday. Hong Kong and Seoul declined while Shanghai edged higher.
Market players appeared to be relieved to learn that President Joe Biden will nominate Jerome Powell for a second four-year term at the helm of the Federal Reserve, a vote of confidence in Powell’s handling of central bank policies during the brutal disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1.1% to 24,669.59 and the Kospi in Seoul lost 0.5% to 2,997.33. In Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.8% to 7,410.60 and the Shanghai Composite index added 0.2% to 3,588.77.
“With Japan on holiday today, the price action in U.S. markets is being broadly repeated in Asia. Tech-heavy indices are suffering while those with more traditional resource, banking and property weightings are holding their own,” Jeffrey Halley of Oanda said in a commentary.
Investors are closely watching the Fed to see whether pressure from rising inflation prompts it to speed up its plans for trimming bond purchases and raising its benchmark interest rate.