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| Asian markets follow Wall Street higher | Asian markets follow Wall Street higher |
| (34 minutes later) | |
| Asian shares made early gains on Wednesday, taking the positive lead from Wall Street where US consumer data lifted investors' confidence. | Asian shares made early gains on Wednesday, taking the positive lead from Wall Street where US consumer data lifted investors' confidence. |
| The Dow Jones and S&P 500 rose more than 1% after data showed retail sales grew in August for the second month. | |
| Investors remained cautious ahead of the key decision by the Federal Reserve on whether to raise US interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade. | Investors remained cautious ahead of the key decision by the Federal Reserve on whether to raise US interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade. |
| Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 1.4% to 18,282.42 points. | |
| Bernard Aw, market strategist at trading firm IG said the market is positioning itself for a rate hike this week. | |
| "[Stock] futures indicated a higher implied probability of a rate move this Thursday," he said in a note on Wednesday. | |
| China recovers losses | |
| Chinese shares traded higher after the mainland benchmark index lost 3.5% on Tuesday. | |
| The Shanghai Composite was up by 0.3% to 3,012.66, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index gained 1.1% to 21,691.53. | |
| In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 index was up 1.3% to 5,082.50, also recovering from yesterday's losses. | |
| South Korean shares were up despite regional tensions growing after North Korea said on Tuesday that its main nuclear complex was operating and it was working to improve weapons that could be used against the US at any time. | South Korean shares were up despite regional tensions growing after North Korea said on Tuesday that its main nuclear complex was operating and it was working to improve weapons that could be used against the US at any time. |
| The benchmark Kospi index was higher 1.5% to 1,967.22. |