Asian markets ended mostly lower on Wednesday ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s interest-rate decision later in the day. Investors have raised their bets that, to tackle inflation, the US Federal Reserve will raise interest rates aggressively by 75 basis points, which would be the largest US interest rate hike in 28 years. Japanese shares fell even though a survey showing an improvement in confidence among Japanese manufacturers. The selloff persisted even after the Bank of Japan ramped up its bond buying program and Japan's core machinery orders posting a surprise double-digit growth in April. Moreover, Seoul shares declined after reports that South Korea's unemployment rate ticked up 0.1 percentage point to 2.8% in May. However, Chinese and Hong Kong shares gained after a slew of data from China topped expectations. Data showed that Chinese factory activity rebounded slightly in May, retail sales fell less than expected in the month and fixed asset investment for the January to May period topped expectations due to relaxation in Covid-related restrictions.
Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
Shanghai Composite | 3,305.41 | 16.50 | 0.50 |
Hang Seng | 21,308.21 | 240.22 | 1.14 |
Jakarta Composite | 7,007.05 | -42.83 | -0.61 |
KLSE Composite | 1,459.05 | -22.23 | -1.50 |
Nikkei 225 | 26,326.16 | -303.70 | -1.14 |
Straits Times | 3,105.85 | -3.04 | -0.10 |
KOSPI Composite | 2,447.38 | -45.59 | -1.83 |
Taiwan Weighted | 15,999.25 | -48.12 | -0.30 |
