The leading Asian stock exchanges went in different directions on Wednesday in a situation where investors are digesting Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's comment that the US central bank "does not need to hurry" to lower interest rates again.
In Tokyo, the important Nikkei 225 index had grown 0.2 percent by lunchtime, while the broader Topix index decreased 0.3.
From Hong Kong, distinctly cheerful tones were heard when the Hang Seng index rose 1.6.
Cautiously positive tones were heard simultaneously from Shenzhen's composite index, which crept up 0.1, while the composite index in Shanghai fluctuated around zero.
