Asia-Pacific markets traded higher on Wednesday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 reaching a fresh record high as investors appeared willing to look beyond ongoing uncertainty surrounding negotiations between the United States and Iran aimed at ending the conflict in the Middle East.
The advance came despite continued military activity in the region. U.S. Central Command said on Tuesday that American forces had intercepted multiple Iranian ballistic missiles and drones and launched defensive strikes in response to what it described as attempted attacks by Iran.
According to the statement, U.S. forces also destroyed three one-way attack drones launched by Iran towards civilian vessels transiting regional waters.
American troops additionally conducted self-defence strikes against an Iranian military ground control station on Qeshm Island.
By 11:20 am AEST (1:20 am GMT), Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.2%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 had surged 2.2% to a new record high. South Korea's KOSPI 200 remained closed for a public holiday.
Investors also digested fresh economic data from Australia, which showed growth slowing during the March quarter.
Fresh data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) showed gross domestic product expanded by 0.3% during the quarter and 2.5% over the year on a seasonally adjusted chain volume basis.
The result fell short of market expectations for quarterly growth of 0.5% and annual growth of 2.7%.
Grace Kim, head of National Accounts at the Australian Bureau of Statistics, said: "Economic growth slowed in the March quarter, with modest household and public sector expenditure as well as cyclone disruptions to mining and export activities."
The weaker-than-expected data may reinforce expectations that the Reserve Bank of Australia will retain flexibility in its monetary policy outlook as domestic demand remains subdued.
Overnight, Wall Street extended its record-setting run. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.5%, while the S&P 500 gained 0.1% to finish above 7,600 for the first time. The Nasdaq Composite edged 0.03% higher.
Commodity markets also remained in focus amid ongoing geopolitical developments. Brent crude oil rose 1.1% to settle at US$96.00 a barrel, while spot gold added 0.1% to finish at US$4,489.37 an ounce.
Chinese equities also posted gains on Tuesday. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.4% to 4,075.1, while the CSI 300 advanced 1.5% to 4,914.6.
Hong Kong stocks outperformed regional peers, with the Hang Seng Index climbing 2.5% to 25,953.0. In India, the BSE Sensex added 0.5% to close at 74,649.8.
European markets also ended higher overnight. The UK's FTSE 100 gained 0.3% to 10,373.5, Germany's DAX rose 0.5% to 25,124.2, and France's CAC 40 advanced 0.8% to 8,209.1.
