Asia-Pacific markets open mixed on Tuesday as traders in Asia react to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s comments that the central bank will not wait until inflation hits 2% to cut interest rates.
Powell indicated that central bank is looking for “greater confidence” that inflation will drop to the 2% level, citing “long and variable lags” in policy effects.
His comments combined with investors betting that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s failed assassination attempt will lead to big gains for the party and friendlier fiscal policies pushed the Dow Jones Industrial Average to close at fresh highs.
The blue-chip Dow also reached a new intraday high, advancing 0.53% to close at 40,211.72. Similarly, The S&P 500 added 0.28% to 5,631.22, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.4% to end at 18,472.57.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.12% on its open, retreating from the index’s all-time closing high on Monday.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 resumed trading after a public holiday, with the Nikkei 225 gaining 0.75% and the Topix rising 0.88%.
Shares of Japan’s TDK Corporation, the sixth largest stock on the Nikkei by weight, jumped almost 5%.
South Korea’s Kospi climbed marginally, while the Kosdaq swung the opposite direction and fell 1.4%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures were at 17,880, lower than the HSI’s last close of 18,015.94.
Investors continue to look for developments from China’s Third Plenum, where high local government debt levels and a push for advanced manufacturing will be on the agenda.
Elsewhere, Singapore state investor Temasek announced plans to invest up to $10 billion in India over three years in the country’s financial services and healthcare industries. As of March, the company had 7% of investments in the South Asian nation.
Temasek, which has 19% of its investments in China, said it continues to take a cautious stance due to trade tensions.
—CNBC’s Alex Harring and Yun Li contributed to this report.
Source: CNBC