Asian stock markets are trading mostly higher on Wednesday, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, as optimism surrounding China's reopening helped offset concerns about interest rates. US Fed Chair Jerome Powell refrained from commenting on monetary policy at a symposium. Asian Markets closed mixed on Tuesday.
However, in his speech in Stockholm, Powell stressed the case for monetary policy independence and noted that price stability is the bedrock of a healthy economy. He emphasized the need for the central bank to be free of political influence while it tackles high inflation.
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May 01, 2026 15:54 ET Central banks dominated the economics news flow this week with almost all major ones announcing their latest policy decisions and many boosted expectations for a rate hike in June. In other news, several countries released the preliminary data for first quarter economic growth. In the U.S., comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell were also in focus as his term ends this month.