Stock markets in the Asia Pacific region received, in the main, a welcome boost after monetary authorities in Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan cut borrowing rates.

Mirroring co-ordinated moves led by the US Federal Reserve and China on Wednesday, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority lowered its main rate by 50 basis points to 2 per cent, while the Bank of Korea and Taiwan’s Central Bank of China both lowered by 25 basis points to 5 per cent and 3.5 per cent respectively.