Asian shares mixed at Thursday's close

By Aysu Bicer

ANKARA (AA) - Asian shares mixed on Thursday as increasing COVID-19 cases in China and Taiwan continue to threaten the supply chain.

China, the world's second-largest economy, has been shaking with lockdowns, quarantine and testing rules, despite the rest of the world opting to "live with the virus."

Also, investors will follow the statements of the President of the US Federal Reserve (Fed), Jerome Powell and the President of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde and will search for clues about the future of monetary policy.

The Asia Dow, which includes blue-chip companies in the region, was flat at 39.487 points, down 0.01%.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 stock exchange was up 335.21 points, or 1.23%, to 27,553.

The Hang Seng, the benchmark for blue-chip stocks trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange, posted a remarkable fall, 262.45 points, or 1.25%, to 20,682.

China's Shanghai Stock Exchange also lost 71.24 points, or 2.26%, to close at 3,079 points.

The Indian Sensex benchmark was up 869.13 points, or 1.52%, to end the day at 57.912 points.

The Singapore index fell 28.19 points, or 0.85%, to 3,335.