Asian shares mostly rise as markets digest Fed moves

Asian shares are mostly higher as investors  digest the latest message from the U.S. Federal Reserve on raising short-term interest rates by late 2023

TOKYO -- Asian shares mostly rose Friday, as investors digested the latest message from the U.S. Federal Reserve on raising short-term interest rates by late 2023. Japan's benchmark lost earlier gains and inched down less than 0.1% in afternoon trading to 29,009.75. South Korea's Kospi edged 0.2% higher to 3,272.42. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.1% to 7,368.90. Hong Kong's Hang Seng jumped 0.7% to 28,769.94, while the Shanghai Composite gained 0.1% to 3,530.32. The Bank of Japan kept its ultra-lax monetary policy intact, as investors had expected. Wrapping up a two-day meeting, the central bank also extended by six months, until March 2022, a lending program to help companies weather the pandemic. “Japan’s economy has picked up as a trend, although it has remained in a severe situation due to the impact of COVID-19 at home and abroad,” the Bank of Japan said in a statement.