The global forecast for the Asian markets is upbeat on optimism over the outlook for interest rates. The European and U.S. markets were solidly higher and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.
The Hang Seng finished modestly higher on Wednesday as gains from the financials and resource stocks were limited by weakness from the properties and a mixed picture from the technology shares.
For the day, the index gained 104.59 points or 0.49 percent to finish at 21,436.05 after trading between 21,327.41 and 21,686.30.
Among the actives, Alibaba Group jumped 3.11 percent, while Alibaba Health Info tanked 2.61 percent, ANTA Sports improved 1.57 percent, China Life Insurance soared 3.93 percent, China Mengniu Dairy plunged 2.81 percent, China Resources Land strengthened 2.25 percent, CITIC advanced 1.55 percent, CNOOC gained 1.51 percent, Country Garden rallied 3.13 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical surged 4.39 percent, Galaxy Entertainment dropped 1.03 percent, Hang Lung Properties plummeted 3.19 percent, Henderson Land fell 0.18 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas sank 0.65 percent, JD.com retreated 1.36 percent, Lenovo skidded 1.09 percent, Li Ning slumped 1.28 percent, Meituan tumbled 2.52 percent, New World Development lost 0.22 percent, Techtronic Industries climbed 1.59 percent, Xiaomi Corporation declined 2.00 percent, WuXi Biologics spiked 3.78 percent and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China was unchanged.
The lead from Wall Street is broadly positive as the major averages opened higher on Wednesday and mostly improved as the session progressed.
The Dow jumped 268.91 points or 0.80 percent to finish at 33,973.01, while the NASDAQ spiked 189.04 points or 1.76 percent to close at 10,931.67 and the S&P 500 advanced 50.36 points or 1.28 percent to end at 3,969.61.
The strength on Wall Street reflected optimism about the highly anticipated consumer price inflation report due later today.
The report is expected to show a slowdown in the annual rate of consumer price growth and could have a significant impact on the outlook for interest rates.
Crude oil prices rose sharply Wednesday on hopes for a global economic recovery and the possible impact of sanctions on Russian crude output. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for February jumped by $2.29 or 3.1 percent at $77.41 a barrel, rising for a fifth straight session.