Investing.com - Asian-Pacific markets lifted on Thursday, mirroring gains in US stocks, as positive signals from the Federal Reserve boosted risk sentiment.
By 11:15 am AEST (12:15 am GMT) the S&P/ASX 200, KOSPI 200, and Nikkei 225 each rose by 0.3%, 0.1% and 0.8%, respectively.
US stocks edged higher after minutes from the Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting reinforced expectations that the central bank would likely cut interest rates in September. The S&P 500 rose 0.4%, a day after snapping an eight-session winning streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained about 0.1%, and the NASDAQ Composite added 0.6%.
Among S&P 500 companies, the top three gainers were Keysight Technologies Inc (NYSE:KEYS) Inc, surging 13.9%; Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT), jumping 11.2%; and TJX Companies Inc (NYSE:TJX), lifting 6.1%. The biggest decliners included Franklin Resources Inc (NYSE:BEN), which dropped 12.6%; Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (NASDAQ:WBA), falling 3.2%; and American Express Company (NYSE:AXP), losing 2.7%.
In commodity markets, Brent crude oil was down 1.4% to US$76.14 a barrel, while gold was down 0.1% at US$2,512.56.
Chinese shares closed lower, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index falling 0.4% to 2,856.58, and the Shenzhen Composite Index losing 0.3% to 1,521.41. Hong Kong shares also ended lower, with the benchmark Hang Seng Index dropping 0.7% to 17,391.01. Japanese shares followed suit, with the Nikkei Stock Average falling 0.3% to 37,951.80.
In contrast, Indian shares ended higher, with the BSE SENSEX rising 0.1% to 80,905.30.
Stocks in the UK finished higher, with the FTSE 100 Index adding 0.1% to 8,283.43. In Europe, shares closed higher as well. Germany's DAX added 0.5% to 18,448.95, and France's CAC 40 rose 0.5% to 7,524.72.