Asia-Pacific markets set to climb after third Fed cut of the year
Shibuya crossing is known as the world’s busiest pedestrian crossing
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Asia-Pacific markets will open higher on Thursday following the Fed’s third interest rate cut this year.
The US central bank cut the Federal Funds rate by 25 basis points to 3.5%-3.75%, possibly signaling that the reduction is over for now.
Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said at the press conference after the meeting that the interest rate cut put the Fed in a comfortable position regarding interest rates.
“We’re in a good position to wait and see how the economy develops,” Powell said, noting that President Donald Trump’s tariffs are a driver of inflation.
of Australia S&P/ASX 200 It was up 0.6% in early trading.
of japan Nikkei 225 Futures pointed to a stronger open in the market; The futures contract in Chicago was at 50,910 and the futures contract in Osaka was at 50,860 compared to the previous close of 50,602.8.
Hong Kong Hang Seng index Futures traded at 25,602, above the index’s last close of 25,540.78.
In addition to Wednesday’s interest rate decision, the Fed also announced that it will continue purchasing $40 billion in Treasury bills starting Friday. As a result, short-term Treasury yields fell.
In its statement, the central bank also touched on the weak labor market and removed the statement that it “remained low.” This shows that the focus is shifting away from inflation and towards supporting the economy.
overnight in the USA, Dow Jones Industrial Average It jumped 1.1% following the Fed decision on Wednesday. S&P 500 increased by 0.7% and Nasdaq Composite increased by 0.3%.
— CNBC’s Jeff Cox, Sean Conlon and Pia Singh contributed to this report.
