Asia-Pacific markets traded mostly higher on Wednesday, continuing their gains despite artificial intelligence fears and weak economic data unsettled US investors.
The US retail sales report for December showed consumer spending was flat, less than the 0.4% monthly gain economists polled for in the Dow Jones survey had expected.
In Asia, investors are assessing the latest data coming out of China.
The country’s consumer price index rose by 0.2% in January compared to the previous year, according to data from China’s National Bureau of Statistics published on Wednesday, SEEbiz reports. That was below economists’ forecast of 0.4% growth in a Reuters poll, a sign of continued deflationary pressure in the absence of stronger stimulus.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.43%.
South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.6%, on track for a third straight day of gains, while the small-cap Kosdaq gained 0.55%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index added 0.13%, while the mainland’s CSI 300 lost 0.26%.
Japanese markets are closed for a public holiday.
