[ad_1]
Top view of Seoul in the morning in autumn 2016.
Natthapol Bussai | Moment | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific stocks were expected to open mixed on Thursday after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said a rate cut could come in September if inflation data remains “encouraging.”
Earlier, the Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting ended on Wednesday and decided to maintain the federal funds rate at its current level of 5.25% to 5.5%.
Powell warned that a rate cut was not inevitable, but he also seemed to rule out a 50 basis point cut.
“I don’t want to get into specifics about what we’re going to do, but it’s not something we’re considering right now,” he said.
In addition to the Fed’s comments, Asian investors will also assess business activity data in the region, as well as purchasing managers’ index data from China, Japan and South Korea.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index Futures showed the market opening weaker after Wednesday’s gains, with the Chicago contract at 38,880 and the Osaka contract at 38,710, compared with the previous close of 39,101.82.
On Wednesday, the Bank of Japan raised its benchmark interest rate to “around 0.25%,” the highest level since 2008.
Futures in Australia S&P/ASX 200 At 8,078, the index would retreat from its all-time closing high of 8,092.3 set on Wednesday.
Hongkong Hang Seng Index The futures index was at 17,377 points, lower than the Hang Seng Index’s last closing price of 17,344.6 points. GDP grew by 3.3% year-on-year India’s economic growth slowed in the second quarter, exceeding the 2.7% expansion expected by economists polled by Reuters.
Overnight, U.S. stocks rose sharply after the Federal Reserve announced Keep interest rates unchangedAs expected, traders also piled into large-cap technology stocks at the same time.
this S&P 500 rose 1.58% to 5,522.30 points, while Nasdaq Composite Index The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.64% to 17,599.40 points. This was the best trading day for both indexes since February.
this Dow Jones Industrial Average Up 99.46 points, or 0.24%.
—CNBC’s Pia Singh, Alex Harring and Samantha Subin contributed to this report.
[ad_2]
Source link
