Asian stocks climbed to fresh near one-year highs and the Japanese yen weakened on Wednesday as awaited central bank meetings this week that could see fresh stimulus in Japan and provide clues on U.S. interest rates.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS was up 0.2 percent, climbing to its highest since Aug. 11 2015. It is up 10 percent in a month.
Japan's Nikkei ended higher on Wednesday, lifted by reports that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is to announce a 28 trillion yen ($265.30 billion) economic stimulus package.
The Nikkei ended up 1.7 percent at 16,664.82. It had jumped as much as 2.7 percent to 16,821.43 in early afternoon trade.
China stocks closed sharply lower on Wednesday, with major indexes posting their worst daily performance in six weeks, as investors sold off on worries that regulatory changes are coming.
The CSI300 index of the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen fell 1.6 percent to 3,218.24 points, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 1.9 percent to 2,991.12. Both were down over 3 percent at one point in mid-afternoon trade.
Hong Kong shares finished modestly higher on Wednesday, shaking off sharp losses in mainland China markets.
The Hang Seng index rose 0.4 percent to 22,218.99 points, while the China Enterprises Index gained 0.6 percent to 9,115.29.
Reference: Reuters
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