Asian stocks were mixed on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump's latest comments on tariffs raised uncertainty in Chinese markets. U.S. futures edged higher and oil prices declined. Investors in Asia were relieved on Monday after Trump decided not to immediately impose significant tariffs on China.

On an overall basis, global fund managers expect less than 5 per cent return from Asia ex-Japan stocks in the next one year, BofA Securities' survey findings suggest.

U.S. stock indexes are drifting higher following a mostly encouraging batch of profit reports from big companies