Stock market today: Asian markets are mixed ahead of what traders hope will be a final Fed rate hike

Asian stock markets are mixed after Wall Street hit a 15-month high ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting that traders hope will end with the final increase in this interest rate cycle. Shanghai, Hong Kong and Seoul declined. Tokyo edged higher. Oil prices retreated. Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index rose 0.3% after companies reported bigger profits than expected. Investors expect the Fed to raise its key lending rate by 0.25 percentage points at this week's meeting to a 22-year high. They hope the U.S. central bank can manage a “soft landing,” extinguishing inflation while avoiding a recession. Traders waited for details of how China’s ruling Communist Party will carry out its promise to shore up sluggish economic growth.