Key Asian markets ended mixed, today, as investors reflected on President Donald Trump's less combative tone in his first speech to Congress, while growing bets on a U.S. rate hike this month buoyed the dollar. So Japan's Nikkei-225 index gained 0.9 percent; Singapore's Straits Times index rose 0.4 percent; and South Korea's Kospi index added 0.5 percent. But China's Shanghai Composite index declined 0.5 percent; and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index shed 0.2 percent. In Europe, the UK's FTSE-100 and Germany's DAX were flat, and France's CAC-40 had gained 0.1 percent in intra-day trade. Federal Reserve Governor, Lael Brainard yesterday became the latest central bank official to signal that a hike may be in the offing, saying an improving global economy and a solid U.S. recovery meant it would be "appropriate soon" to raise rates. The dollar index which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, hit a seven-week high.