Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index was an exception in the region, dropping 0.5% to 33,519.61

Asian shares rose on Thursday, with Chinese benchmarks more than 1% higher, after Wall Street logged modest gains in this holiday-shortened week.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index was an exception in the region, dropping 0.5% to 33,519.61. Speculation over whether and when the BoJ might ease its longstanding lax monetary policy and raise its key interest rate from minus 0.1% has kept stocks wobbling in the world’s third-largest economy.

BOJ policymakers are waiting to see what sort of wage gains might come in 2024 as part of the central bank’s strategy of keeping credit easy to try to drive stronger growth.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index added 1.5% to 16,876.69 on heavy buying of technology and property shares. It has shed nearly 14% this year as China’s economy has sputtered despite the country’s reopening after it loosened COVID restrictions.

Online food delivery firm Meituan was 4.3% higher and property developer Sino-Ocean Group Holding was 3.5% higher.

The Shanghai Composite index soared 1.1% to 2,947.01.

South Korea’s Kospi added 0.9% to 2,638.04 and the S&P/ASX 200 in Australia gained 0.5% to 7,600.50.

India’s Sensex advanced 0.4% and Bangkok’s SET was 0.3% higher.

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 added 0.1% to 4,781.58. It is up 24% for the year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.3%, to end at 37,656.52.

The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite added 0.2% to 15,099.18. It has surpassed other major indexes with a gain of 44% this year.

Trading was subdued with two trading days left in the year. The S&P 500 is coming out of its eight consecutive winning week and is hovering just below its all-time high set in January of 2022.