Asian markets mixed at close, Europe exchanges in positive

By Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) - Stock markets in Asia were mixed on Wednesday at close, while European stock exchanges were in positive territory.

The Asia Dow, which includes blue-chip companies in the region, was up 11 points, or 0.34%, to 3,272 points at 0930 GMT.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 stock exchange, on the other hand, lost 73 points, or 0.3%, to close at 24,717 points.

Earlier in the day, Japan revised down its estimate of annual economic growth for the fourth quarter of 2021 to 4.6%, from the preliminary reading of 5.4%.

The Hang Seng, the benchmark for blue-chip stocks trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange, fell 138 points, or 0.67%, to 20,627.

China’s Shanghai Stock Exchange was the worst performer of the day, losing 37 points, or 1.13%, to finish at 3,256.

China's consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.9% in February, from the same period of last year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) earlier. The CPI increased 0.6% on a monthly basis, China’s state-owned Xinhua news agency said.

India's Sensex benchmark, however, was the best performer of the day, soaring 1,212 points, or 2.27%, to 54,625 at 0936 GMT.

The Singapore index increased 46 points, or 1.48%, to end the day at 3,195.

In Europe, the STOXX Europe 600, which includes around 90% of the market capitalization of the European market in 17 countries, was up almost 13 points, or 3.1%, to 427.96 at 0943 GMT.

London's FTSE 100 increased 135 points, or 1.95%, to 7,099. Germany's DAX 30 was the best performer in Europe at the time, jumping 606 points, or 4.7%, to 13,438.

While France's CAC 40 was up 262 points, or 4.4%, to 6,225, Italy's FTSE MIB rose 995 points, or 4.4%, to 23,333.

Spain's IBEX 35 increased 220 points, or 2.85%, to 8,076.

In the US, futures indicated that the American indices will open with gains on Wednesday.

The Dow Jones futures were up 474 points, or 1.45%, to 33,075 at 0947 GMT.

The S&P futures rose 65 points, or 1.57%, to 4,234, while the Nasdaq futures added 245 points, or 1.85%, to 13,512.