Asian stocks showed a mixed performance on Wednesday following a decline in Big Tech stocks that led to Wall Street's worst day in three weeks. U.S. futures and oil prices experienced an uptick.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index remained largely unchanged at 40,090.78. Hong Kong’s benchmark rebounded 1.4% to 16,385.90 after a 2.6% fall the previous day, triggered by China’s economic growth target of around 5% and plans for modest stimulus. The Shanghai Composite index fell 0.2% to 3,040.82.
Meetings on Wednesday may provide more insights into China's economic stimulus plans amid slowing growth.
In Seoul, the Kospi dropped 0.3% to 2,641.49. South Korea’s inflation accelerated in February, reaching 3.1% year-on-year, while the Bank of Korea maintained interest rates for a ninth straight month.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.1% to 7,733.50 after the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported a 0.2% expansion in the last quarter. India’s Sensex declined 0.4%, and Bangkok’s SET added 1%.
On Tuesday, the S&P 500 fell 1% to 5,078.65, marking its second consecutive loss after reaching an all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1% to 38,585.19, and the Nasdaq composite slid 1.7% to 15,939.59.
Apple's 2.8% decline weighed on the market due to concerns about sluggish iPhone sales in China. Bitcoin briefly surpassed $69,000 before retreating below $63,000.
Hopes for future interest rate cuts gained momentum following reports of slower growth in U.S. construction and services industries. Traders are anticipating a potential Federal Reserve rate cut in June.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's testimony before Congress on Wednesday could influence expectations regarding rate cuts. In the bond market, the 10-year Treasury yield fell to 4.16%.
In other markets, U.S. benchmark crude oil rose 29 cents to $78.44 per barrel, and Brent crude increased 23 cents to $82.27 per barrel. The U.S. dollar slipped to 149.89 Japanese yen, while the euro rose to $1.0859.
Paraphrasing text from "Yahoo Finance" all rights reserved by the original author.
