View of Shanghai skyline from a container station.
This is CNBC's live blog covering Asia-Pacific markets.
China stocks rose Thursday as its imports surged past estimates and exports rose in line with expectations, while the broader Asia-Pacific market was mixed.
China's imports climbed 8.4% in April, above a Reuters poll estimate of a 4.8% year-on-year rise. Exports rose 1.5% year-on-year in April in U.S. dollar terms, meeting expectations.
Mainland China's CSI 300 index rose 0.95% after the data, extending gains from a 0.2% rise at the open and closing at 3,664.56. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 1.16%.
Separately, real wages in Japan fell 2.5% year on year in March, marking a 24th straight month of decline.
Investors are looking for any signs of the "virtuous cycle" of increasing wages and prices envisioned by the Bank of Japan.
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Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.34% to 38,073, marking two straight days of losses, while the broad-based Topix gained 0.26% to finish at 2,713.46.
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South Korea's Kospi retreated from a one-month high, falling 1.2% to close at 2,712.14, while the small-cap Kosdaq dropped 0.26% to 870.15.
The Australian S&P/ASX 200 slid 1.06%, ending the day at 7,721.6.
Overnight in the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average extended its winning streak to six days, as investors shook off some weakness in tech.
The Dow added 0.44% to notch its longest winning run of 2024. The S&P 500 inched lower and closed near the flatline, while the Nasdaq Composite pulled back by 0.18%.
Investors are also digesting a slew of Federal Reserve commentary. Boston Fed President Susan Collins said on Wednesday that the Fed's interest rate policy will likely need to remain at its current level until inflation moves "sustainably" toward the central bank's 2% target.
— CNBC's Pia Singh and Alex Harring contributed to this report.
China stocks extend gains after upbeat April trade data
Mainland China's CSI 300 index rose nearly 1%, extending gains after opening 0.2% higher, as the country's customs agency released upbeat trade data.
While April imports topped estimates, exports rose in line with expectations.
China's imports climbed 8.4% in April, compared with Reuters poll estimate of a 4.8% year-on-year rise. Exports rose 1.5% year on year in April in U.S. dollar terms, meeting expectations.
Exports and imports had both declined year on year in March.
— Shreyashi Sanyal, Evelyn Cheng
Philippines GDP expands less than expected in the first quarter
The Philippine economy grew at a slightly slower-than-expected pace in the first quarter of 2024, according to official data.
the economy expanded 5.7% year on year in the first quarter, slightly below a Reuters poll expectation of 5.9%.
The GDP reading for the first quarter was still higher than the prior quarter's 5.5%.
The government also released consumer prices data which showed the Philippines' headline inflation rose to 3.8% year on year in April from 3.7% in March 2024.
— Shreyashi Sanyal
Bank of Japan officials discussed higher-than-expected rate hikes, April meeting notes show
Bank of Japan could raise interest rates faster than what the market expects, according to the summary of opinions from the central bank's monetary policy meeting in April.
The bank said that there was "high uncertainty" about economic activity and prices that were forecast in April.
The bank in April raised its inflation for fiscal 2024, forecasting inflation between 2.5% and 3%, up from 2.2% to 2.5% forecast in January.
The BOJ said "if this outlook will be realized, then in about two years, the price stability target of 2% will be achieved in a sustainable and stable manner," resulting in a future policy rate higher than what is being factored in by the market.
— Lim Hui Jie
CNBC Pro: When Nvidia shares rise — these 4 global stocks have tended to rise too, according to recent history
Four stocks in the Stoxx Europe 600 tend to rise when Nvidia shares fall, according to an analysis of recent data by CNBC Pro.
The share price performance of these four stocks is correlated to the chip maker's over the past year.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more about the six stocks here.
— Ganesh Rao
CNBC Pro: 'Biggest investment opportunity': Investment manager names stocks to play the copper market
Copper has been on fire, touching $10,000 per ton this week.
Will McDonough CEO of merchant bank Corestone Capital says he has "not seen this level of interest and conversation on copper."
"Copper is going through some serious spikes and prices are likely to be much higher in the future. I think it is the biggest investment opportunity right now," he told CNBC Pro, naming stocks he is betting on right now.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
— Amala Balakrishner
Real wages in Japan decline 2.5% in March, marks 24 straight months of decline
Real wages in Japan fell 2.5% year on year in March, marking its 24th straight month of decline.
The 2.5% drop in March was faster than the 1.8% recorded in February, as rising costs outpaced nominal wages.
Nominal wages rose 0.6% compared to the same period last year, coming in at 301,193 yen ($1,938.66) and slowing from the 1.4% rise seen in February.
— Lim Hui Jie
Mitsubishi Motors Corp shares fall after Japanese automaker forecasts lower annual profit
Mitsubishi Motors Corp shares fell 5% in early trading after the Japanese automaker forecast lower earnings for the current fiscal year.
Mitsubishi on Wednesday said it expected a net profit of 144 billion yen ($926,784.06) in the fiscal year ending March 2025, which is about 7% lower than its 154.71 billion yen net profit last year.
Toyota Motor Corp on Wednesday forecast lower operating profit for its current financial year as well.
The broader Topix index was 0.4% higher on the day.
— Shreyashi Sanyal
UBS says investors should 'stay vigilant' amid global uncertainties and diversify across asset classes
Several risks could still affect the market's momentum, according to UBS.
"While we continue to see a constructive macro backdrop for risk assets, investors should stay vigilant on a range of economic and geopolitical risks that could send market volatility back up again," said Mark Haefele, chief investment officer for the firm's global wealth management.
Haefele pointed out that despite the recent gains in U.S. equities, including the S&P 500 having recorded its best four-day rally since November on the back of positive Fed speak, several concerns remain that could risk oil prices and increase investor concerns. Those include the ongoing uncertainty of a cease-fire deal in Gaza, a potentially "vulnerable" disinflation trend and the upcoming U.S. presidential election.
"With markets oscillating between pricing different scenarios, asset class volatility could remain elevated. Investors can mitigate such volatility and keep their portfolios on track by diversifying and balancing across asset classes," the investment head said in the Wednesday note, adding that quality bonds in a portfolio, and oil and gold for portfolio hedges, are attractive plays for investors in this environment.
— Pia Singh
U.S. crude oil recovers losses after surprise stockpile decline
Crude oil futures rose Wednesday, recovering losses from earlier in the session as U.S. crude inventories fell.
The West Texas Intermediate contract for June rose 61 cents, or 0.78%, to settle at $78.99 a barrel. The Brent contract for July was last trading at $83.75 a barrel, up 59 cents, or 0.72%.
Oil was down more than 1% earlier in the session, after U.S. commercial crude stockpiles declined by 1.4 million barrels in the first week of May, according to official data from the Energy Information Administration. The decline was a surprise compared to industry data that indicated a 509,000 barrel buildup.
Oil prices have fallen nearly 7% since reaching their April highs when traders bid up prices on fears that Iran and Israel would go to war. Investors have largely sold off the war premium since then, with Morgan Stanley removing $4 per barrel of risk from its oil price forecast for the year.
— Spencer Kimball
Fed's Collins wants more confidence that inflation is receding before cutting
Boston Fed President Susan Collins said Wednesday that it is likely to take longer than expected to get inflation back down to the central bank's goal, but noted that policymakers should be wary not to wait too long to start normalizing interest rates.
"The recent upward surprises to activity and inflation suggest the likely need to keep policy at its current level until we have greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably toward 2 percent," Collins said in remarks at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
As she examines the conditions that will need to fall into place before cutting, Collins said she is focused on inflation expectations, more signs of disinflation, signals from wages and moderation in the labor market.
"The current situation requires methodical perseverance, recognizing that progress will take time and continue to be uneven. Expecting all indicators to be well-aligned is too high a bar to start normalizing policy," Collins added.
Current Fed policy is "well-positioned" as the various pieces of information develop, she said.
— Jeff Cox
