Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 increased by 0.3% to conclude the trading day at 45,630.31. Asia-Pacific markets exhibited a mixed performance on Wednesday following declines, prompted by comments from U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who stated that “equity prices are fairly highly valued.” Powell also indicated that the path for rate cuts remains uncertain and that the central bank is confronted with a “challenging situation.”
Australia’s ASX/S&P 200 experienced a decline of 0.92%, closing at 8,764.5. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand announced Tuesday that Anna Breman would be the new governor of the central bank, marking a historic moment as it is the first time a woman has held the role. She will begin her five-year term on December 1. Christian Hawkesby has been fulfilling the role of acting governor at the RBNZ since March, following the unforeseen exit of Adrian Orr. His interim six-month appointment is scheduled to end in October. South Korea’s Kospi declined by 0.4% to 3,472.14, whereas the small-cap Kosdaq fell 1.29% to 860.94. However, South Korean defense stocks showed resilience, with major players such as Hanwha Aerospace, Korea Aerospace, and Hyundai Rotem recording gains ranging from 2% to 5%.
Their rally follows President Donald Trump’s expression of support for Ukraine amid its conflict with Russia, stating that the U.S. will persist in supplying weapons to NATO for the military alliance “to do what they want with them.” South Korea has become a significant provider of military equipment and munitions to NATO members. Super Typhoon Ragasa unleashed hurricane-force winds across elevated regions and southern parts of Hong Kong. Conditions continue to be challenging, with significant rainfall and thunderstorms anticipated. Shares of Alibaba listed in Hong Kong surged more than 6% following CEO Eddie Wu’s announcement on Wednesday regarding the company’s plans to increase its investment in artificial intelligence.
Alibaba is progressing with the 380 billion yuan ($53 billion) investment in AI infrastructure and plans to expand it further, Wu stated during the company’s annual Apsara Conference in Hangzhou. The company has introduced its most extensive AI language model, Qwen3-Max. Australia’s CPI for August increased by 3% year on year, surpassing the 2.9% estimate provided by economists. Overnight in the U.S., the three major averages concluded the trading day on a downward note. The S&P 500 paused its recent upward momentum as concerns about the durability of the artificial intelligence bull trend unsettled investors.
The broad market index finished the day down 0.55% at 6,656.92, having achieved a new all-time intraday high earlier in the session and recorded a peak close on Monday. The Nasdaq Composite declined almost 1%, closing at 22,573.47, primarily driven down by losses in AI companies such as Nvidia, Oracle, and Amazon. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 88.76 points, or 0.19%, at 46,292.78.