Chinese stocks lead Asia higher on hopes for US trade talks

Hong Kong(CNN Business) Asian markets traded higher on Wednesday, with stocks in Shanghai leading the way on hopes for a resumption of US-China trade talks next week.

US negotiators are expected to travel to China to resume talks on a trade agreement, a person familiar with the plans told CNN. The negotiations will be the first face-to-face talks since President Donald Trump met Xi Jinping, his Chinese counterpart, at the G20 summit last month.

The Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.1%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.9%, while Japan's Nikkei rose 0.5%.

Here are some of the other big moves on Asian markets at 10:30 a.m. in Hong Kong today.

• Wall Street's gains provided a positive lead. The Dow (INDU) and S&P 500 (SPX) both closed 0.7% higher, while the Nasdaq (COMP) gained 0.6%.
• Investors were cheered by the prospect of reduced trade tension and shrugged off news of an unprecedented confrontation Tuesday between warplanes from four countries above a disputed island off the coast of South Korea and Japan.
• Nissan (NSANF) shares rose 0.9% in Tokyo, outperforming the Japanese market, after reports that it will cut 10,000 jobs.
• The Star Market, China's new Nasdaq-style tech board, had a positive opening on its third day of trading. Of the 25 stocks listed, 19 were rising in early trade.
• The British pound dropped slightly against the US dollar, pulling back following a rally after Boris Johnson won a party leadership election, putting him on track to be confirmed as prime minister Wednesday.

In company news, Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba (BABA) said it will open up its platform to allow American companies to sell their products to small-and mid-sized businesses around the world.