Most Asian stock markets close midweek on high note

All major Asian indexes closed Wednesday with gains, except for India’s Sensex, as fears about the spillover effect of the banking sector eased.

The Asia Dow, which includes blue-chip companies in the region, rose 1.13% to 3,255.19 points.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 was slightly up 0.03% to 27,229.48 points.

The Hang Seng, the benchmark for blue-chip stocks trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange, climbed 1.52% to 19,539.

China’s Shanghai Stock Exchange gained 0.55% to 3,263, and the Singapore index increased 1.38% to close at 3,172.

Industrial production in China rose 2.4% in January-February, less than the market forecast of a 2.6% hike.

The country’s retail sales grew 3.5% in the same period, meeting expectations.

The Sensex index, however, dropped 0.59% to 57,555.

India’s merchandise trade deficit fell to $17.43 billion in February, from $18.75 billion a year earlier.