Investing.com - Asia shares were mostly higher on Thursday as investors digested a split in the Federal Reserve's view on the likely path of rate hikes.
The Shanghai Composite Index was last down 0.76%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was last down 0.12%. The yuan rose against the U.S. dollar Thursday after the People's Bank of China set a stronger fixing - the first in three sessions - at 6.4707 compared with 6.4754.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 gained 0.31% despite Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda avoiding talk on the currency at a meeting with regional colleagues with the yen stronger around 109.18.
The S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.32%.
In Australia, the AIG construction index came in at 45.2, down from 46.1, contracting for a fourth consecutive month and at a steeper rate as house-building activity contracted at its sharpest in 14 months.
Overnight, U.S. stocks moved broadly higher on Wednesday, halting a three-day losing streak, as the major indices received a boost from surging oil prices following an unexpected draw in U.S. crude inventories last week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 112.73 or 0.64% to 17,716.05, while the NASDAQ Composite index rose 76.79 or 1.59% to 4,920.72, each ending mild losing skids. With the sharp gains, the NASDAQ soared to its highest level of the 2016 calendar year. Previously, the NASDAQ lagged behind its counterparts, which hit yearly-highs late last month. Both indices were largely unaffected by the release of the Federal Open Market Committee's minutes from its March meeting on Wednesday afternoon.
The minutes showed a fractured Fed, divided on the timing of their next interest rate hike. Several members expressed a desire to rate short-term interest rates this month, while others wanted to remain cautious amid heightened financial risks abroad.
The S&P 500 Composite index, meanwhile, gained 21.49 or 1.05% to 2,066.66, as eight of 10 sectors closed in the green. Stocks in the Health Care and Energy industries led, each gaining more than 2% on the session. Stocks in the Telecom and Utilities sectors lagged.