Monday 17th February 2025: Asia-Pacific Markets Rise as Investors Await Central Bank Decisions

Global Markets:

•  Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei up 0.15%, Shanghai Composite up 0.15%, Hang Seng up 0.13% ASX down 0.37%
• Commodities : Gold at $2909.35 (0.33%), Silver at $33.75 (0.38%), Brent Oil at $74.9 (0.12%), WTI Oil at $70.7 (0.03%)
• Rates : US 10-year yield at 4.491, UK 10-year yield at 4.4990, Germany 10-year yield at 2.423

News & Data:

• (USD) Core Retail Sales m/m  -0.4% to 0.3% expected
• (USD) Retail Sales m/m  -0.9% to 0.2% expected

Markets Update:

Asia-Pacific markets traded mostly higher on Monday as investors analyzed Japan’s fourth-quarter economic growth data and awaited key central bank decisions in the region. Japan’s Nikkei 225 remained flat, while the Topix gained 0.29%. South Korea’s Kospi added 0.18%, and the small-cap Kosdaq jumped 1.2%. Preliminary government data showed Japan’s GDP grew 2.8% on an annualized basis, surpassing the expected 1%. The Japanese yen strengthened to 151.95 against the U.S. dollar.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.64%. Tencent shares surged 4.25% to their highest level since July 2021 after its Weixin messaging app began beta testing Deepseek integration. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 0.23%, while the Hang Seng Tech Index dipped 0.11%. Mainland China’s CSI 300 traded flat. In Thailand, fourth-quarter GDP grew 3.2% year-on-year, missing forecasts of 3.9%, while annual growth stood at 2.5%.

The Reserve Bank of Australia kicked off a two-day meeting that may lead to an interest rate cut on Tuesday. Central banks in Indonesia and New Zealand are also set to announce their rate decisions on Wednesday. Investors are closely watching these developments amid ongoing global economic uncertainties.

In the U.S., markets closed mixed on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 165.35 points (0.37%) to 44,546.08, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.01% to 6,114.63. The Nasdaq Composite gained 0.41% to 20,026.77. Despite weak retail sales data, all three major indexes posted weekly gains, driven by easing concerns over U.S. tariff policies and better-than-expected inflation data.

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The post Monday 17th February 2025: Asia-Pacific Markets Rise as Investors Await Central Bank Decisions first appeared on IC Markets | Official Blog.