Shibuya crossing in known to be the world’s busiest pedestrian crossing
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Asia-Pacific markets gave up earlier gains to trade mostly lower Thursday, following the Federal Reserve’s third rate cut of the year.
The U.S central bank reduced the Federal Funds rate by 25 basis points to 3.5%-3.75%, and signaled that it was done easing for now.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell said at his post-meeting news conference that the reduction puts the Fed in a comfortable position as far as rates go.
“We are well-positioned to wait and see how the economy evolves,” Powell said, while noting that President Donald Trump’s tariffs had fueled inflation.
The U.S. dollar index fell as much as 98.54 on Thursday, marking its weakest level since Oct. 21.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 started the day in positive territory, but fell 0.9% to close at 50,148.82. The Topix was also down 0.94% to 3,357.24.
South Korea’s Kospi also reversed course to dip 0.59% and end at 4,110.6, marking a third straight day of losses. The small-cap Kosdaq was marginally below the flatline and finished at 934.64.
Hong Kong Hang Seng index was flat and mainland China’s CSI 300 lost 0.64%.
Shares of ZTE Corp in Shenzhen dropped 10% after Reuters reported that the Chinese telecom equipment maker might need to pay more than $1 billion to the U.S. government to settle allegations of foreign bribery.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 inched up 0.15%, ending the day at 8,592.
In addition to the rate decision Wednesday, the Fed also announced it would resume buying $40 billion in Treasury bills, beginning Friday. Short-term Treasury yields moved lower as a result.
The central bank also addressed the weak labor market in its statement, removing language stating that it “remained low.” This suggests its focus is shifting to supporting the economy, away from inflation.
Overnight in the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped on Wednesday, climbing 1.1% after the Fed decision, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.7% and the Nasdaq Composite increased 0.3%.
— CNBC’s Jeff Cox, Sean Conlon and Pia Singh contributed to this report.
