Asia Pacific stocks up as investors await Fed rate decision; Samsung Electronics earnings miss expectations

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Stocks in Asia Pacific rose in morning trade as investors await the U.S. Federal Reserve's decision on interest rates, expected later on Wednesday stateside.

South Korea's Kospi gained 0.12% in early trade. Over in Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.4% as shares of major banks such as Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Westpac advanced.

Overall, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index traded 0.21% higher.

On the corporate earnings front, South Korea's Samsung Electronics posted a first quarter net profit of 4.9 trillion Korean won (approx. $4.01 billion), Reuters reported Wednesday. Still, that was below Refinitiv estimates of 5.1 trillion won.

The industry heavyweight flagged that overall earnings are likely to decline in the second quarter as compared to the previous period, while Covid-19 is expected to significantly impact demand for several of its core products, according to Reuters.

Markets in Japan are closed on Wednesday for a holiday.

In central bank news, the Fed is expected to announce its interest rate decision at 2:00 a.m. HK/SIN on Thursday. Investors will look for guidance on the U.S. central bank's future path of interest rates as the country looks toward gradually reopening its economy.

Oil prices jumped in the morning of Asian trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures 1.71% higher at $20.81 per barrel. U.S. crude futures also gained 7.54% to $13.27 per barrel.

Overnight stateside, the Dow Jones Industrial Average snapped a four-session winning streak as it closed 32.23 points lower at 24,101.55. The S&P 500 ended its trading day 0.5% lower at 2,863.39 while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.4% to close at 8,607.73.

The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 99.877 after earlier falling to levels around 99.5.

The Japanese yen traded at 106.73 per dollar after strengthening sharply from levels above 107.2 yesterday. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.6507 following a rise from levels below $0.648 yesterday.

Here's a look at what's on tap for Wednesday:

• Australia: Consumer Price Index for the first quarter at 9:30 a.m. HK/SIN

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