Business activity data from the Asia-Pacific region is anticipated, as markets in the region open higher.

• The business activity data for India, Japan, and China, which is set to be released today, is being eagerly anticipated by traders in Asia.
• In the U.S., both the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 reached new record highs.

On Wednesday, the Asia-Pacific markets rose, following Jerome Powell's statement at a central banking conference that the US Federal Reserve had made progress on inflation, but was still patient about reducing interest rates.

The release of June business activity data from India, Japan, and China, which is scheduled for later today, is eagerly anticipated by traders in Asia.

The Nikkei 225 in Japan increased by 0.45%, surpassing the 40,000 mark, while the broad-based Topix also rose by 0.11%.

The Kosdaq Index rose 0.8% in South Korea, while the country's stock market began the day up 0.50%.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 opened up 0.17% in early trade.

The HSI's last close was higher than Hong Kong futures, which were at 17,764.

In the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the Nasdaq, and the S&P 500 all experienced gains overnight. The Dow gained 0.41%, the Nasdaq gained 0.62%, and the S&P 500 jumped 0.84%. Additionally, both the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 reached record high closes.

The S&P 500 was lifted by Tesla shares after Elon Musk's electric vehicle company exceeded delivery expectations for the second quarter.

—CNBC's Pia Singh and Sarah Min contributed to this report.