In Asian Equity Markets indices gained ground during Wednesday’s trade, following an overnight rally on Wall Street. Mainland Chinese stocks rose in early trade, with the Shanghai composite rising 0.42%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index also rose nearly 1%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumped 1.78% in morning trade, with index heavyweight Fanuc surging around 3%. Over in South Korea, the Kospi rose 0.52% as chipmaker SK Hynix advanced more than 2%. The ASX 200 in Australia also added 0.68% as the sectors mostly advanced.

In Currency Markets the U.S. dollar struggled to bounce off seven-week lows on Wednesday after U.S. central bank officials hinted at the possibility of an interest rate cut in the face of rising risks to trade and global growth. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Tuesday dropped his standard reference to the Fed being “patient” in approaching any rate decision, saying instead the central bank will respond as “as appropriate” to trade pressure. Against the yen, the dollar held steady at 108.165 yen per dollar, within striking distance of a near five-month high of 107.845.

In Commodities Markets oil prices resumed their slide on Wednesday, dragged down by a surpise gain in U.S. inventories and comments from the head of Russian state oil producer Rosneft questioning the point of a deal with OPEC to withhold supplies. Brent futures were down 27 cents, or 0.4%, at $61.70 a barrel. They rose 1.1% on Tuesday after a near 13 percent fall in the previous four sessions. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was down by 32 cents, or 0.6%, at $53.16 a barrel. The U.S. benchmark closed 0.4% higher on Tuesday.

In US Equity Markets indices rallied on Tuesday to clock their biggest one-day gains in five months after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell left the door open for a possible rate cut. The S&P 500 gained 2.14%, to 2,803.27 and the Nasdaq Composite added 2.65%, to 7,527.12. The technology sector was the biggest boost to the S&P with a 3.3% advance, led by gains in Apple Inc and Microsoft. Rising U.S. Treasury yields boosted the S&P 500 bank index, which jumped 3.65%. But utilities, typically seen as one of the most defensive bets, edged slightly higher with a 0.04% gain.

In Bond Markets U.S. Treasury yields rose on Tuesday with longer-dated yields climbing from their lowest since September 2017, as Wall Street stock prices recovered from recent losses tied to growing trade conflicts between the United States and key trade partners. Two-year yields declined 4.30 basis points to 1.883%. They touched 1.834% on Monday, their lowest since December 2017. Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields rose 4.50 basis points to 2.126% after hitting 2.061%, their lowest since September 2017 on Monday.