The Melbourne skyline is reflected in the Maribyrnong River in the early morning light on April 18, 2023.
William West | AFP | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were mixed, as investors assessed Australia’s July inflation numbers, which came in higher than expected
Australia’s CPI rose 3.5% year on year, slightly above the 3.4% expected by economists polled by Reuters and compared to 3.8% in June. The latest CPI figure is the lowest since March.
Minutes of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s last meeting revealed that the central bank had considered raising interest rates as it strives to tame inflation.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200, which hovered near the flatline after the CPI release, closed at 8,071.4.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was 1.05% lower as of its final hour of trade, while mainland China’s CSI 300 lost 0.57% to hit a near seven-month low of 3,286.5.
Chinese online retailer JD.com announced a $5 billion buyback late Tuesday, prompting a 2.24% jump in its U.S.-listed shares, while the firm’s Hong Kong listed shares rose 1.47%.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 reversed losses to gain 0.22%, ending at 38,371.76, while the broad-based Topix rose 0.42% to close at 2,692.12.
South Korea’s Kospi ended flat at 2,689.83, while the small-cap Kosdaq slipped 0.32% to 762.5, marking a sixth straight day of losses.
Overnight in the U.S., all three major indexes finished higher as investors looked toward tech giant Nvidia’s earnings report due Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average inching up 0.02% to end at another record close of 41,250.5.
The S&P 500 and the tech heavy Nasdaq Composite crept up 0.2% to end at 17,754.82.
—CNBC’s Lisa Kailai Han and Brian Evans contributed to this report.