(MENAFN– ecpulse)
Stocks fluctuated in Asia carrying a slightly mixed close on Wednesday, as traders eagerly awaited congressional testimony by U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke.
Most Asian stocks gained in afternoon trade, supported by a rally in Japanese equities. Nikkei 22 Index reversed earlier losses to settle higher at 14,615. Gains were led the most by telecommunications, consumer services and utilities, respectively. MSCI Pacific Index was up 0.48 percent at 842.62.
On the other side, China`s CSI 300 Index reversed a two-day winning streak, falling 1.51 percent to settle at 2,282.87, despite better-than-expected surge in foreign direct investors in June. In Hong Kong, Hang Send Index surged 0.28 percent to settle 21,371.87.
Shanghai Composite Index snapped a three-day rally, falling 1.01 percent to settle at 2,044.92. Australian shares ended nearly flat, with the S&P/ASX 200 Index adding only 0.09 percent to settle at 4,981.68.
Bernanke will start to offer his takes on the direction on economic growth and inflation in his semi-annual monetary policy report to Congress later on Wednesday. Traders are hoping they could harvest further clues on the timing of when monetary policy is likely to be scaled back.
Uncertainty about the Fed`s QE-exit strategy continues to weigh on equities, the dollar and Japanese yen in particular. However, the U.S. currency is quite steady ahead of the Bernanke`s testimony. USD/JPY rebounded from yesterday`s slump, now trading in mid- to high-99 range.
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