Global Markets:
Asia-Pacific markets experienced gains amid volatile trading on Thursday as investors reacted to the Federal Reserve’s half-percentage-point interest rate cut. Japan’s Nikkei 225 increased by 2.53%, and the Topix rose 2.41%. Meanwhile, the Japanese yen weakened by 0.68% against the U.S. dollar to 143.24. The Federal Reserve’s rate cut lowered its benchmark borrowing rate to a target range of 4.75% to 5%.
Following the Fed’s move, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority reduced its interest rate by 50 basis points to 5.25%, reflecting the city’s currency peg to the U.S. dollar. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong climbed 1.81%, with China Vanke shares jumping 8.7%. Mainland China’s CSI 300 index went up by 0.8%, driven primarily by real estate stocks, which saw a 4.3% increase.
South Korea’s Kospi index inched up 0.11%, while the Kosdaq gained 0.65%. In Australia, the unemployment rate held steady at 4.2% in August, with employment figures surpassing expectations at 47,500 additions. This contributed to the S&P/ASX 200 rising by 0.64%, reaching a new record high.
New Zealand’s GDP for the second quarter contracted by 0.2%, which was better than the expected 0.4% decline. Taiwan’s central bank is preparing to announce a key rate decision, with the Taiwan Weighted Index up by 1.24%.
In the U.S., all major indices fell overnight. The Dow Jones decreased by 0.25%, the S&P 500 by 0.29%, and the Nasdaq by 0.31%, despite intraday highs.
The post Thursday 19th September 2024: Asia-Pacific Markets Rise Amid Fed’s Interest Rate Cut first appeared on IC Markets | Official Blog.
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