Asian shares mixed after tech-led rally on Wall Street

BANGKOK (AP) — Stocks were mixed in Asia on Wednesday after a rally on Wall Street led by technology stocks.

Share benchmarks rose in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Sydney but fell in Shanghai. U.S. futures were lower and oil prices pushed higher.

Japan reported its trade deficit p ersisted in March as imports surged 31% thanks to soaring oil prices and a weakening yen. The deficit of 412 billion yen ($3.2 billion) for March was lower than the previous month's 670 billion yen but was quadruple analysts' estimates and a reversal from a surplus of 615 billion yen in March 2021.

Data for the fiscal year that ended in March showed exports jumped almost 24% but were outpaced by imports, which climbed 33%. The fiscal year deficit of 5.4 trillion yen (nearly $42 billion) was the highest in seven years.

“Seemingly, the global supply chain disruptions due to the ongoing war and China lockdowns are weighing on regional trade activity," ING economists said in a research note.

The dollar remained at a 20-year high against the Japanese yen, at 128.59 to the dollar. The weaker yen reflects a divergence between rising interest rates in the U.S., where the Federal Reserve is seeking to tamp down inflation, and unchanged rates in Japan, where the central bank has kept its key rate at minus 0.1% for years.

The weaker yen helps make Japanese exports more competitive overseas and fattens profits when they are converted from dollars to yen, but it also raises costs both for consumers and businesses.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index gained 0.8% to 27,198.13 while the Kospi in South Korea edged less than 0.1% higher to 2,720.21. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong advanced 0.1% to 21,059.52 and the Shanghai Composite index slipped 0.6% to 3,174.35.

In Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 picked up 0.1% to 7,569.50....