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Investing.com — Asian stocks were mixed on Thursday, buoyed by weak guidance from Wall Street after the Federal Reserve fell short of expectations for a rate cut as early as March 2024. I received it.
Japanese and Australian indexes were the worst performers on the day, falling between 0.8% and 1% as traders locked in recent gains as risk appetite waned. The Nikkei stock average has broken off from a 34-year high, while the Australian Stock Exchange 200 has lost track of its record high.
The slump in Japanese stocks was also caused by the Bank of Japan's hawkish signals. Policymakers discussed the possibility of a short-term departure from the Bank of Japan's ultra-dovish policies, according to the Bank of Japan's latest opinion summary.
Most regional markets received weak guidance from Wall Street after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank is in no hurry to start cutting interest rates, especially before March 2024.
But Powell stopped short of declaring victory over inflation, pointing out that the U.S. economy remains resilient. This has led to widespread market belief that the Fed will only delay rate cuts by a few months.
Some analysts also said the Fed could cut rates even more significantly later this year to make up for the delay in lowering rates.
The Fed's rate cut plans are a key focus for Asian stock markets, largely because they are expected to affect the scale of capital inflows to the region in the coming months.
Asian markets were broadly mixed on Thursday. South Korea's index rose 1.2%, while India's index futures showed calm trading.
Chinese stocks rebound on weak economic data
China and the index rose 0.9% and 0.4%, respectively, recovering from near multi-year lows, despite persistent signs of economic weakness.
Hong Kong was Asia's best performer, rising nearly 2% after a steep decline earlier this week.
A showed on Thursday that China's manufacturing industry grew in line with expectations in January. However, the pace of growth remains weak, and Thursday's figures also came a day after showing continued weakness in the sector.
Separate data showed new home sales in China fell sharply in January, suggesting the country's deepening property market crisis has done little to ease.
Recent financial stimulus by the Chinese government has been limited to boosting stock prices, with some reports saying local government-backed institutions were the main supporters of the temporary rally in early January. However, local stocks nearly reversed this gain earlier this week.
