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Asia Markets Mostly Higher as U.S. Debt Ceiling Bill Passes House Vote

Kazuhiro Nogi | Afp | Getty Images

This is CNBC's live blog covering Asia-Pacific markets.

Asia-Pacific markets were mostly higher on Thursday after the bill to raise the U.S. debt ceiling was passed in the House of Representatives, advancing it to the Senate just days ahead of the default deadline.

The House passed the bill with support from both Democrats and Republicans, a dramatic conclusion to weeks of tense negotiations between the White House and Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.  

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 saw a 0.84% gain to close at 31,148.01 after it retreated from the 31,000 mark on Wednesday, with the Topix also up by 0.88% and ending at 2,149.29.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.27% to finish at 7,110.8, rebounding off a one month low.

South Korean markets were more mixed. The Kospi was down 0.31% and ended at 2,569.17, being the only major Asian benchmark index to be in the red on Thursday. Meanwhile, the Kosdaq was up 0.8% and closed at 863.78, closing at its highest level in about six weeks.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rebounded after touching bear market territory, with the HSI rising fractionally.

Mainland Chinese markets were also higher, with the Shanghai Composite closing marginally up at 3,204.63.

The Shenzhen Component rose 0.39% to end at 10,835.9, a slight rebound from its lowest level since November 2022.

Overnight in the U.S., all three major indexes slipped as investors kept an eye on the federal debt ceiling debate in Washington in the final trading day of May, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.41% and the S&P 500 falling 0.61%. The Nasdaq Composite saw the largest loss, shedding 0.63%.

— CNBC's Jesse Pound and Alex Harring contributed to this report

India's factory activity expands at fastest rate in 31 months: S&P Global

India's manufacturing purchasing managers' index surged to its highest level since October 2020, according to private surveys by S&P Global.

The country's manufacturing PMI came in at 58.7, higher than the 56.5 expected by economists polled by Reuters.

This is 22nd straight month that India's manufacturing sector remained in expansionary territory, and the highest in 31 months.

S&P wrote that demand conditions "demonstrated remarkable strength," with factory orders rising at the fastest pace since January 2021.

As such, S&P observed that this led to stronger increases in production, employment and quantities of purchases.

— Lim Hui Jie

China's May factory activity data shows growth, beats expectations: Caixin PMI

China's factory activity rose above the 50-mark that separates growth and contraction in May, a private survey showed on Thursday.

The Caixin/S&P Global manufacturing purchasing managers' index rose to 50.9 in May, rebounding from April's reading of 49.5.

The latest data was driven by improved production and demand, helping struggling firms that have been hit by slumping profits.

— Jihye Lee

South Korea's factory activity stays in contraction: S&P survey

South Korea's factory activity remained in contraction territory, below the 50-mark that separates growth and contraction.

The S&P Global's seasonally adjusted purchasing managers' index for South Korean manufacturers came in at 48.4 for May, ticking slightly higher than April's reading of 48.1.

The latest reading also marked the 11th consecutive month of contraction since July 2022 and the longest downtrend seen since early 2009.

The Korean won slightly weakened to 1,321.78 against the U.S. dollar.

— Jihye Lee

CNBC Pro: These 2 stocks have raised dividends above the inflation rate every year — for 40 years

Only two U.S.-listed companies have raised dividends every year above the rate of inflation for the past four decades, according to a CNBC Pro analysis.

When companies increase their payout rates faster than inflation, it enables shareholders' investment returns to keep up and enhance purchasing power throughout the investment period.

CNBC screened about 100,000 stocks worldwide to narrow down the analysis using FactSet data.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Ganesh Rao

Communication and aviation stocks drag South Korea's Kospi

South Korea's Kospi was the only Asian benchmark index in the red on Thursday, being dragged by losses in communication and airline stocks.

The Kospi was 0.29% down on Thursday afternoon, with heavyweights Samsung Electronics and LG Energy Solution trading lower by 0.84% and 1.5% respectively,

Other notable names among leading decliners included telecom company KT, which slid 2.38%, Korean Air inching down 0.98%, and automakers Hyundai and Kia that lost 1.1% and 1.16% respectively.

— Lim Hui Jie

CNBC Pro: BofA names 4 stocks to tap the world's largest EV market — and says one has 71% upside

China's electric vehicles are "much more competitive than before" — and it's likely to remain the world's largest EV market in 2025, according to BofA.

The bank shares tips on how investors can position themselves in China's EV market, including stock picks.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Weizhen Tan

India's economy expands faster than expected from January to March at 6.1%

India's gross domestic product expanded 6.1% year on year from January to March, faster than the 5% expected by economists polled by Reuters.

The country's growth was mostly boosted by government and private capital spending, government data showed.

The country's full year GDP grew 7.2% year on year, lower than the 9.1% recorded in the year before. India records its full year GDP from March to March the next year.

The rupee strenghtened marginally on Thursday to trade at 82.662 against the greenback.

— Lim Hui Jie

Japan manufacturing activity expands for the first time since Oct 2022: au Jibun Bank

Japan's factory activity expanded for the first time since Oct 2022, according to a private survey.

The final au Jibun Bank Japan manufacturing purchasing managers' index stood at 50.6, snapping a six-month streak of readings below the 50-mark that separates expansion and contraction.

Tim Moore, economics director at S&P Global Market Intelligence wrote that the latest print "highlights a decisive turnaround in manufacturing sector performance," pointing at a recovery in Japan's domestic economic conditions.

This helped to lift client spending, which offset another month of subdued demand in key export markets, S&P wrote.

— Lim Hui Jie

Nikkei 225 outperformed global peers in May

Japan's Nikkei 225 outperformed major global benchmarks in the month of May, FactSet data showed.

Seeing the sharpest gains among its peers, the rise seen for the month was led by semiconductor and related stocks, as it continued to mark new three decade highs this week.

Wall Street expects to see higher investment and customer demand for Japan stocks as global companies continue to look to cut their exposure to China.

Advantest was the outperformer on the Nikkei 225, jumping by 70%, followed by Screen, which rose 33% for the month. Renesas Electronics also jumped 29% in May.

— Jihye Lee

Fed's Harker says he supports a rate hike pause

Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker said Wednesday that he's leaning toward not raising rates at the central bank's June meeting.

"I am in the camp increasingly coming into this meeting thinking that we really should skip," Harker said. To be sure, he added that Friday's jobs report could change his mind. Following those comments, the CME Group's FedWatch tool showed only a 24% chance of the Fed raising rates.

— Fred Imbert

Dollar index reaches highest levels since March

The dollar index reached a fresh high of 104.361 Wednesday morning, marking its highest level since March 16. It pulled back slightly to 104.28 as of 9:52 a.m. ET.

The index, which weighs the U.S. greenback against a basket of currencies, is up 2.73% month to date, putting it on pace for its best month since September 2022, when it rose 3.14%.

— Hakyung Kim

April job openings unexpectedly rise, but Chicago PMI misses

The latest U.S. job openings and labor turnover survey (JOLTS) shows openings increased to more than 10 million in April from 9.6 million in March. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected a decline to 9.5 million.

"The surge in job openings defied expectations for a decline and stands as another testament to the resilience of the labor market," wrote Bankrate senior economic analyst Mark Hamrick.

To be sure, not all data released Wednesday was positive. The Chicago PMI reading for May came in at 40.4, well below a Dow Jones forecast of 47.

— Fred Imbert

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