HONG KONG: Asian markets were mixed Friday after Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell tempered expectations for interest rate cuts, while traders also contemplated a hawkish Trump presidency.
The tepid performance followed a negative lead from Wall Street and came at the end of a painful week for equities fuelled by worries about another disruptive China-US trade war.
The dollar, however, held gains against its peers and pushed higher versus the yen after data showing a slowdown in Japanese economic growth, which could dampen expectations for more rate hikes by Tokyo.
Fed chief Powell on Thursday played up the performance of the world’s top economy and policymakers’ progress in bringing inflation down towards their two percent target.
That had allowed officials to start lowering borrowing costs in September, with a follow-up last week.
However, while the bank is expected to cut rates again next month, Powell warned that the path “is not preset”, adding that “the economy is not sending any signals that we need to be in a hurry to lower rates”.
The remarks followed warnings of caution from other decision-makers this week, with investors already worried that Trump’s planned tax cuts and tariffs could reignite inflation.
Investors are now scaling back their bets on how many cuts will be made next year.
Asian stocks retreat, bitcoin soars to record on Trump euphoria
Figures Thursday showed an uptick in wholesale price inflation, a day after news that consumer prices rose in line with forecasts. The readings further weighed on cut hopes.
The prospect of rates staying higher than previously thought has added to downward pressure on stocks.
However, investors battled to end the week on a positive note, with Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Taipei, Manila, Jakarta and Wellington all up, though Seoul and Singapore slipped.
Tokyo was lifted by a weaker yen as the dollar continued its march higher.
“The (Trump) administration’s renewed focus on tariffs could weigh heavily on currencies of trade-exposed economies, particularly those in Asia and the eurozone,” said Charu Chanana, chief investment strategist at Saxo Markets.
“The appointment of China hawks to the cabinet is spelling a clear near-term focus on trade and tariff policy, which is dollar-positive.”
She added that “rising yields, particularly in the US, increase the relative appeal of the dollar against lower-yielding currencies, further boosting demand for the dollar”.
Bitcoin sat around $88,000 after striking a record of $93,462 on Wednesday. However, observers have predicted the unit could soon break the $100,000 mark after Trump’s pro-crypto comments during his election campaign.
Key figures around 0230 GMT
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.8 percent at 38,842.13 (break) Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.5 percent at 19,537.96
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.1 percent at 3,381.41
Dollar/yen: UP at 156.46 yen from 156.28 yen on Thursday
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0540 from $1.0524
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2669 from $1.2662
Euro/pound: UP at 83.19 pence from 83.11 pence
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.4 percent at $68.43 per barrel
Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.4 percent at $72.26 per barrel
New York - Dow: DOWN 0.5 percent at 43,750.86 (close)
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.5 percent at 8,071 (close)
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