Asia-Pacific markets rise as key Chinese policymakers gather for investment summit

Asia-Pacific markets opened higher on Tuesday, tracking Wall Street gains buoyed by a Tesla rally, and as investors parse Chinese financial policymakers’ speech at an investment summit in Hong Kong.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 traded 0.53% higher. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 0.68%, while the Topix rose 0.65%. South Korea’s Kospi and Kosdaq traded around the flatline.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was 0.71% higher, while the mainland’s CSI 300 rose 0.31%.

At a meeting earlier this month, members of Australia’s central bank maintained that while there was no immediate need to adjust interest rates, it is important to remain “forward looking” and ready to adjust as economic conditions develop.

Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng said at a global financiers summit in Hong Kong that China will support Hong Kong innovation and financial reform, enhancing the city’s “financial competitiveness.” He, who oversees a top-level economic and financial policy-making body, reiterated Beijing’s commitment to “explore and implement” measures aimed at building Hong Kong as an “international financial center.”

Later in the day, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and several top financial policymakers are scheduled to speak at a global financiers summit in Hong Kong. He, who oversees a top-level economic and financial policy-making body, would be delivering an opening keynote speech at the summit, according to the South China Morning Post.

Li Yunze, the head of China’s National Financial Regulatory Administration, will join Wu Qing, Chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, and Zhu Hexin, Deputy Governor of the People’s Bank of China, for a panel discussion on mainland China’s financial developments, the HKMA summit’s agenda revealed.

Overnight in the U.S., the Nasdaq Composite rose following a rough week, as Tesla shares advanced and Wall Street looked ahead to some major market-moving earnings reports.

The Nasdaq advanced 0.6% to settle at 18,791.81, while the S&P 500 added about 0.4% to close at 5,893.62. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 55.39 points, or 0.1%, to finish at 43,389.60.

Monday’s movements come after a challenging week for the three major benchmarks, which have now pulled back from the peaks reached following Donald Trump’s election win. The decline was fueled by concerns over the direction of interest rates after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell stated that the central bank is not “in a hurry” to cut rates.