Asian Markets Track Wall Street Higher

(RTTNews) - Asian stock markets are mostly higher on Wednesday, following the positive cues from Wall Street overnight, as traders react to a slew of economic data released in the region, despite the US government nearing a shutdown after a short-term spending bill failed to be passed. Traders remain optimistic about further interest rate cuts after a bigger than expected decrease in U.S. consumer confidence in September. Asian markets closed mixed on Tuesday.

To prevent the U.S. government from running out of federal funds, a short-term spending bill needed to be approved by the Congress. Shutdowns in the past have been avoided through a last-minute deal.

Australian shares are trading modestly lower on Wednesday after opening in the green and briefly treading into the green, snapping a three-session winning streak, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 falling well below the 8,850 level, despite the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, with a mixed performance across most sectors.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 29.50 points or 0.33 percent to 8,819.30, after hitting a low of 8,809.00 and a high of 8,86430 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 25.960 points or 0.28 percent to 9,110.00. Australian stocks ended modestly lower on Tuesday.

Among major miners, BHP Group is losing more than 1 percent, Mineral Resources is tumbling more than 4 percent and Rio Tinto is edging down 0.1 percent, while Fortescue is gaining almost 2 percent.

Oil stocks are mostly lower. Woodside Energy is declining more than 1 percent, Beach energy is losing almost 1 percent and Origin Energy is edging down 0.4 percent, while Santos is edging up 0.2 percent.

In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block is tumbling more than 6 percent, Appen is losing almost 2 percent, Xero is declining almost 1 percent and Zip is edging down 0.1 percent. WiseTech Global is flat.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank, ANZ Banking and National Australia bank are losing almost 1 percent each, while Westpac is declining more than 1 percent. Among gold miners, Evolution Mining is flat and Northern Star Resources is edging up 0.5 percent, while Resolute Mining is gaining more than 1 percent and Newmont is edging down 0.2 percent. Gold Road Resources is delisted after its acquisition by Gold Fields.

In other news, shares in Bravura Solutions are rocketing almost 18 percent after upgrading its earnings guidance for the full-year 2026.

In economic news, the manufacturing sector in Australia continued to expand in September, albeit at a slower pace, the latest survey from S&P Global revealed on Wednesday with a manufacturing PMI score of 51.4. That's down from 51.6 in August, although it remains above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.660 on Wednesday.

The Japanese stock market is trading significantly lower on Wednesday, extending the losses in the previous three sessions, despite the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is falling below the 44,600 level, with weakness across most sectors led by exporters and financial stocks.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 44,411.26, down 521.37 points or 1.16 percent, after hitting a low of 44,357.65 earlier. Japanese stocks ended modestly lower on Tuesday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is losing almost 1 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is edging down 0.4 percent. Among automakers, Honda is down almost 1 percent and Toyota is losing more than 1 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest is gaining almost 1 percent and Screen Holdings is adding more than 1 percent, while Tokyo Electron is losing more than 1 percent.

In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial are losing more than 2 percent each, while Mizuho Financial is declining almost 3 percent.

Among the major exporters, Mitsubishi Electric is declining almost 2 percent, Sony is losing almost 1 percent, Canon is down more than 1 percent and Panasonic is slipping more than 2 percent.

Among other major losers, IHI is tumbling more than 5 percent, Nitori Holdings are declining almost 5 percent and BayCurrent is slipping almost 4 percent, while M3, Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Murata Manufacturing, Credit Saison, Japan Steel Works and JGC Holdings are losing more than 3 percent each. Dai-ichi Life, Mercari, Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Tokio Marine are down almost 3 percent each.

Conversely, Otsuka Holdings is surging almost 5 percent and Chugai Pharmaceutical is gaining almost 4 percent.

In economic news, large manufacturing in Japan accelerated slightly in the third quarter of 2025, the Bank of Japan's quarterly Tankan Survey of business sentiment showed on Wednesday with a diffusion index score of +14. That was in line with forecasts for +10 and was up from +13 in the previous three months. The outlook came in at +12, missing forecasts for +13 and unchanged from the previous quarter.

The large non-manufacturers index came in at +34, beating forecasts for +33 and unchanged from Q2. The outlook rose to +28 from +27 in the three months prior. The small manufacturing index was steady at +1 with an outlook of -1, while the small non-manufacturing index slipped to +14 from +15.

Meanwhile, the manufacturing sector in Japan continued to contract in September, and at a faster pace, the latest survey from Jibun revealed on Wednesday with a manufacturing PMI score of 48.5. That's down from 49.7 in August and it moves further beneath the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the 148 yen-range on Wednesday.

Elsewhere in Asia, Indonesia and Taiwan are up 1.1 and 1.5 percent, respectively. New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea and Malaysia are higher by between 0.5 and 0.9 percent each. China and Hong Kong are closed for the National Day holiday.

On the Wall Street, stocks fluctuated over the course of the trading day on Tuesday after moving mostly higher over the two previous sessions. The major averages bounced back and forth across the unchanged line for much of the session before a late-day advance.

The upward move seen going into the end of the day helped the major averages close in positive territory. The S&P 500 climbed 27.25 points or 0.4 percent to 6,688.46, the Nasdaq rose 68.86 points or 0.3 percent to 22,660.01 and the Dow increased 81.82 points or 0.2 percent at 46,397.89.

The major European markets also moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index inched up by 0.2 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and the German DAX Index climbed by 0.5 percent and 0.6 percent, respectively.

Crude oil prices declined sharply on Tuesday, extending recent losses as excess supply concerns continue to linger due to the anticipated production increase by OPEC. West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery was down $1.08 or 1.70 percent at $62.37 per barrel.