Asian share markets mostly rose on Wednesday but oil and the dollar slipped as rising Covid-19 cases in China raised fears of fresh lockdowns

Fresh moves by Beijing to bolster China’s struggling property industry helped sentiment but the country’s worsening Covid situation capped gains

With new Covid lockdowns imposed in Beijing and Guangzhou, investors were in pessimistic mood about China’s economic prospects

Investors across the region were holding back on Friday with the US Fed warning inflation was still not under control and China still fighting Covid outbreaks

Gloomy forecasts from US memory chip outfit Micron Technology overnight sent Asian indexes into retreat with tech firms leading the slide

The mystery missile strike on a Polish village near the Ukraine border panicked traders though US President Joe Biden later claimed it hadn’t come from Russia

Investor mood was buoyed by Biden and Xi’s positive meeting and signals that Beijing was easing back on its economically painful Covid curbs

Asian stocks scaled a seven-week high with investors upbeat after cooler-than-expected US inflation figures and signs China was about to relax its Covid curbs

Indexes across the region were under pressure again with inflation woes and cryptocurrency worries weighing on sentiment

All eyes were on the United States and its Congressional elections, the outcome of which will be a key economic driver over the next couple of years

Most of the region’s major indexes fell back with traders keeping their powder dry ahead of US elections for the control of Congress

Investors were still hopeful there might be something to the rumours China was planning to ease back on its Covid policy despite weekend denials