- In a repeat of Wednesday's session, Asian stocks climbed, led by Hong Kong shares, as investors balanced China's reopening with cautious commentary from the Fed's last meeting.
- The Hang Seng benchmark traded at its highest level since July, with Alibaba Group leading the index for the second day as demand for Chinese technology stocks surges. Shares in mainland China and South Korea rose, while those in Japan and Australia fell. European equities futures and S&P 500 contracts declined.
- The minutes of the Fed's December meeting revealed that several officials emphasised the need to control inflation without slowing the economy too much, which encouraged some investors. Meanwhile, traders are returning to Chinese shares, fueled by a growing belief that the lifting of viral restrictions will eventually power a rebound in consumption and expenditure.
- The yen rose against its group of ten peers, recovering from a 1.2% drop against the dollar on Wednesday. Benchmark treasuries gave back some of the previous day's gains, but Australian and New Zealand government debt rose.
