Shares in Asia-Pacific were mixed on Thursday, as investors watched for market reaction after the U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday moved up its timeline for rate hikes.
The three main Wall Street indexes all fell overnight after the Fed revealed it expected its first post-pandemic interest rate hike to come in 2023, a year sooner, citing an improved health situation amid the vaccine rollout.
· Japanese shares end lower on U.S. Fed's hawkish tone, financial shares up
Japanese shares closed lower on Thursday as investors sold off technology and drug stocks following Wall Street’s weak finish after the U.S. Federal Reserve signalled rate hikes earlier than expected, while the financial sector shined as U.S. Treasury yields gained.
The Nikkei share average ended 0.93% lower at 29,018.33, while the broader Topix fell 0.62% to 1,963.57.
· China stocks snap three sessions of losses, Hong Kong gains
China stocks rose on Thursday after three straight sessions of losses as downbeat factory output data eased fears of policy tightening in the world’s second-largest economy.
The CSI300 index rose 0.3%, to 5,096.38 points at the end of the morning session, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.2%, to 3,524.31 points.
The gains came after a three-day losing streak, with the CSI300 falling the most in two months on Wednesday.
Investors trim long positions on Asian currencies, yuan bets halved
Broadly, long bets on China's yuan were lowered after they hit a six-month high in the last poll. It follows the central bank stepping in to warn against speculative bets on the currency after its recent rally.
· Indian shares cut losses as focus shifts to Fed's U.S. growth outlook
Indian shares trimmed losses on Thursday, as investors focused more on the U.S. Federal Reserve raising the country’s economic growth forecast while noting its projection to hike interest rates sooner than expected.
By 0500 GMT, the blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index was down 0.19% at 15,737.90 after falling as much as 0.78%. The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex traded 0.17% lower at 52,411.71, retreating from its 0.77% fall.
· Dow futures drop 100 points after Fed forecasts rate hikes in 2023
Stock futures fell in early morning trading on Thursday after the Federal Reserve raised inflation expectations and forecast rate hikes as early as 2023.
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 97 points. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures also traded in negative territory.
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European stocks pulled back on Thursday as global markets react to the Federal Reserve’s signal that rate hikes will come sooner than expected.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 fell 0.2% in early trade, with utilities shedding 1.1% to lead losses while banks bounced 2.1% on the prospect of interest rate hikes.
Global market sentiment has been dominated overnight by the reaction to the latest Fed policy meeting in which the central bank raised inflation expectations and forecast rate hikes as early as 2023.
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