A General view showing the Hong Kong Skyline in Hong Kong, Saturday, May 22, 2021. (Photo by Vernon Yuen/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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Asia-Pacific markets were set to open mixed on Wednesday, with futures for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index suggesting a 4% rise for the index at open.
HSI futures were at 19,763, compared to the index’s last close of 19,000.
Chinese markets rallied yesterday after the country’s central bank announced a slate of economic support measures, with the HSI seeing its best day in seven months, while mainland China’s CSI 300 recorded its largest one-day gain in over four years.
Investors will be watching Australia’s inflation numbers on Wednesday, with the consumer price index expected to post a 2.7% rise year on year, according to economists polled by Reuters.
Futures for Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 stood at 8,230, higher than its last close of 8,142.2. At this level, the index would cross its all time closing high of 8,209.5.
In contrast, Japan’s Nikkei 225 futures pointed to a weaker open for the market, with the futures contract in Chicago at 37,775 and its counterpart in Osaka at 37,630 compared to the previous close of 37,940.
Overnight in the U.S. The S&P 500 rose to a fresh record on Tuesday, gaining 0.25% to 5,732.93, while the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.2%, also closing at a new record of 42,208.22.
The Nasdaq Composite added 0.56%, powered by shares of chipmaker Nvidia.
Shares of artificial intelligence darling Nvidia climbed nearly 4% after a regulatory filing showed that CEO Jensen Huang wrapped up his sales of the chipmaker’s stock for the time being.
—CNBC’s Brian Evans and Hakyung Kim contributed to this report.