New Zealand shares rose Wednesday while Asian peers lacked direction as investors awaited a key inflation report from the US.

The S&P/NZX 50 Index rose 0.5%, or 59.19 points, to close at 12,943.57.

Asian peers struggled for direction, with the Shanghai SSE down 0.3%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng were little changed.

Wall Street was also mixed overnight, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite relatively subdued. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.5%.

Markets are all eyes on core inflation data from the US and how it will impact the rate cut debate amid the US Federal Reserve's more hawkish rhetoric recently.

In corporate news, Auckland International Airport (NZE:AIA, ASX:AIA) rose nearly 3% after it reported that total passenger movements increased 3% year on year in December 2024 to nearly 1.8 million passengers. International passenger movements reached their highest level in a month since January 2020.

Channel Infrastructure NZ's (NZE:CHI) throughput rose 1% to 909 million liters in the December 2024 quarter from 900 million liters in the same period a year earlier. The fuel import terminal operator's shares were marginally higher at market close.