Asia’s equities fell on Monday after Wall Street saw its worst week, as investors prepare for a week of critical economic data releases, including the US consumer price index, which will determine the Federal Reserve’s next course of action.
As of 9.23 A.M. (Thai time), in Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.24%.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 1.27% and the Kospi in South Korea shed 1.05%.
Following a report from Nikkei that the Japanese government will appoint Kazuo Ueda as the next governor of the Bank of Japan, the value of the yen against the dollar remained volatile at 131.74.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index traded 1.16% lower. In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite gained 0.11%.
After a week of corporate profits and Federal Reserve speakers reiterating their hawkish signals that more work is needed to manage inflation, Wall Street stocks closed the week with the S&P 500 up 0.2% and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.61%. Both indexes posted the worst week since December. On the day, the Dow Jones Industrial Average finished nearly 170 points higher.
Inflation data for the United States is due out on Tuesday, and according to economists’ projections, annual consumer-price rises will have slowed to 6.2%, marking the lowest figure since late 2021. The Federal Open Market Committee’s rate-setting process will benefit greatly from the information provided by this study.
Eric Robertsen, global head of research and chief strategist for Standard Chartered Plc, stated, “The next CPI report has become binary – markets will either breathe a huge sigh of relief, or risk aversion will accelerate.” Since a hard landing in the US is more possible if the FOMC is forced to extend the rate-hiking cycle and postpone rate cuts, more forceful rate cuts will be necessary in the future.
