Hong Kong was playing catch-up after a three-day Lunar New Year break while Tokyo was edgy ahead of the latest GDP figures out of the States

Tokyo’s benchmark index hit a one-month high with investors in positive mood ahead of a big earnings week in the US

Japan’s indexes followed in the slipstream of US markets which were buoyed by Fed chiefs signalling that inflation was cooling

Investor mood was boosted by Beijing’s claims it was winning its war with Covid but fears of a global slowdown continue to cast a shadow

Japan’s strengthening currency weighed on exporters – and investors – while worries over a worldwide slowdown intensified

Chinese indexes saw an unspectacular day ahead of the week-long Lunar New Year break while Japan stocks were boosted by its central bank’s latest decision

Gloomy growth figures out of China brought down the mood on the region’s trading floors though a cooling yen boosted sentiment in Japan

Traders were betting on China bouncing back from its Covid nightmare this year but a soaring yen is ramping up the pressure in Japan

Investor mood was lifted by positive inflation news from the US, hinting at a slowdown in interest rate hikes, but a surging yen dragged on the Nikkei

Traders are banking on a cooling in US prices which will see the US Fed slow down its rate hikes charge

Investor optimism over China’s post-Covid bounceback was dampened by the reality of the gloomy global outlook and a hawkish Fed

Investors are looking beyond China’s current Covid woes and betting on a post-pandemic economic recovery