Asian stock markets close mixed on Thursday

By Tuba Sahin

ANKARA (AA) - Major Asian stock markets closed mixed on Thursday while the Russian war on Ukraine creating uncertainty, the Federal Reserve chair's hint of a quarter-point interest-rate hike helped calm investors at some point.

Jerome Powell said he is "inclined to propose and support a 25 basis point rate hike" later this month after the conclusion of the Federal Open Market Committee's two-day meeting on March 16, instead of 50 basis points as some investors have been forecasting.

The Asia Dow, which includes blue-chip companies in the region, rose 27.7 points, or 0.78%, to 3,579 points at 1000GMT.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 stock exchange increased 184.24 points, or 0.70%, to close at 26,577 points.

China's Shanghai Stock Exchange was flat, falling only 3.08 points, or 0.09%, to finish at 3,481.

India's Sensex benchmark fell the most, shedding 222.7 points, or 0.40%, to 55,246.

The Singapore index rose 15.3 points, or 0.47%, to end the day at 3,260.

The Hang Seng, the benchmark for blue-chip stocks trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange, gained 123.42 points, or 0.55%, to 22,467.