Asia-Pacific stocks mostly rise; shares of Evergrande’s electric car unit plunge more than 10%

SINGAPORE — Shares in Asia-Pacific were mixed in Wednesday trade as investors watch for developments surrounding the war in Ukraine.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index jumped 1.3% in early trade as shares of Chinese tech giant Tencent gained more than 2%.

Hong Kong-listed shares of embattled developer Evergrande’s electric vehicle unit dropped more than 10% after they resumed trading on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Hong-Kong listed shares of China Evergrande Group will “remain suspended until further notice,” according to a Tuesday announcement by the firm.

In mainland China, the Shanghai composite climbed 0.63% and the Shenzhen component rose 0.805%.

Elsewhere, South Korea’s Kospi advanced 0.35%. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.86%.

Japanese stocks lagged the broader region as the Nikkei 225 slipped 0.75%, with shares of telecommunications firm KDDI falling more than 4%. The Topix index shed 1.24%.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan traded 0.41% higher.

In Russia-Ukraine developments, the Russian military has begun moving some of its troops in Ukraine away from areas around Kyiv to positions elsewhere in Ukraine, though Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby warned the troop movements do not amount to a retreat.

U.S. Treasury yields also continued to be monitored by investors on Wednesday, with markets now watching the spread between the 2-year and 10-year rates for a potential inversion — after the 5-year and 30-year rates inverted for the first time since 2006.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note last sat at 2.3578% while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond was at 2.4797%. The 5-year Treasury note yield was at 2.4566% while the 2-year Treasury note’s yield sat at 2.3405%. Yields move inversely to prices.

An inversion of the yield curve has happened previously ahead of recessions, with the purchase of more long-dated Treasurys seen as a sign of investor concern over the economy’s health.

Overnight on Wall Street, the S&P 500 gained about 1.23% to 4,631.60. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 338.30 points, or 0.97%, to 35,294.19 while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.84% to 14,619.64.

The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 98.194 after a recent drop from above 98.8.