Asian shares up, dollar wallows as Fed soothes inflation fears

In early regional trade, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.28% near more than two-week highs, while Tokyo's Nikkei added 0.27%. Australian shares were 0.27% higher and Seoul's Kospi tacked on 0.16%. Chinese blue-chips were up 0.13% after posting their biggest daily gain in nearly 11 months on Tuesday on easing inflation fears and a strong yuan.

SHANGHAI: Asian shares rose on Wednesday while the U.S. dollar stood near its lowest levels this year after U.S. Federal Reserve officials reaffirmed a dovish monetary policy stance, providing yet more assurance to investors worried about the inflation outlook.

Richard Clarida, the Fed's vice chair, said on Tuesday that the U.S central bank would be able to curb an outbreak of inflation and engineer a "soft landing" without throwing the country's economic recovery off track.