Global equities rose on Wednesday as U.S. consumer prices increased only 0.1 per cent in July, easing expectations for a Federal Reserve rate hike next month. MSCI's global gauge rose 0.37 per cent, the S&P 500 added 0.31 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite traded up 0.65 per cent.

Oil prices fell despite ongoing tensions over Iran. Brent crude fell 0.26 per cent to $88.68 a barrel and U.S. crude fell 0.49 per cent to $82.79, though both settled more than $1 higher on Tuesday. Money markets had shown a roughly 50 per cent chance of a Fed rate hike before the inflation data, according to Reuters.

Gold rose 1.61 per cent to $4,436.99 an ounce as softer inflation cooled rate-hike bets. Markets are increasingly pricing in a 60 per cent chance of a quarter-point hike at the Bank of Japan's September meeting, putting pressure on shorter-dated Japanese bonds. The yen strengthened 0.11 per cent to 159.08 per dollar, Channel NewsAsia business reports.