Asian stock markets exhibited a mixed performance on Wednesday. This cautious behavior among traders comes ahead of the highly anticipated US inflation report and the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision expected later today. While the consensus is that the Fed will maintain current interest rates, traders are keenly awaiting the accompanying statement for any forward-looking guidance on interest rates. Asian markets had mostly closed lower on Tuesday.
In Australia, shares are trading notably lower on Wednesday, continuing the losses from the previous session. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is nearing the 7,700 mark, driven by declines in mining and financial stocks despite mixed signals from Wall Street. Technology and energy stocks are showing varied performance.
Specifically, the S&P/ASX 200 Index has dropped by 41.60 points or 0.54%, settling at 7,713.80, after reaching a low of 7,699.20 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 44.00 points or 0.55%, at 7,961.90. Australian stocks had previously ended sharply lower on Tuesday.
Among the major miners, Rio Tinto, BHP Group, and Fortescue Metals are all down by more than 1%, while Mineral Resources has declined nearly 2%.
Oil stocks are displaying mixed outcomes: Santos is up almost 1% and Woodside Energy has gained over 1%, whereas Beach Energy and Origin Energy have both edged down by 0.5%. In the tech sector, Afterpay owner Block has edged down 0.3%, Xero is down almost 1%, and WiseTech Global has fallen almost 2%, while Zip has surged over 2% and Appen is up by more than 1%.
The major banks are all experiencing losses: Commonwealth Bank, ANZ Banking, and National Australia Bank are each down nearly 1%, with Westpac edging down by 0.4%.
Gold miners are seeing slight declines: Newmont, Northern Star Resources, Gold Road Resources, and Evolution Mining have all edged down between 0.1% to 0.3%, while Resolute Mining has declined by 1.5%.
In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.661 on Wednesday.
The Japanese stock market is significantly lower, surrendering gains from the prior two sessions following mixed cues from Wall Street. The Nikkei 225 has dropped to near the 38,800 level, with losses seen in exporters, automakers, and financial stocks as traders remain wary ahead of the Bank of Japan's policy decision later in the week.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 38,826.33, down 308.46 points or 0.79%, after hitting a low of 38,809.36 earlier. Japanese stocks had ended modestly higher on Tuesday.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group has edged up 0.2%, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing dropped by 2.5%. Among automakers, Honda has edged down 0.2%, and Toyota is down 1.5%.
In the tech sector, Advantest is up 0.4%, while Tokyo Electron and Screen Holdings are down by 0.1% to 0.3%.
In banking, Mizuho Financial, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial, and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial are all down by more than 1%.
Major exporters Canon and Panasonic are down almost 1% each, while Sony declined nearly 3%. Mitsubishi Electric has edged up 0.1%.
Notable decliners include Toho, which is down almost 6%, Japan Steel Works, and Daiichi Sankyo, both down over 3% each. Recruit Holdings, Mitsubishi Estate, West Japan Railway, East Japan Railway, and Keyence each fell almost 3%.
Conversely, TDK has gained over 4%, and Taiyo Yuden has added almost 3%.
On the economic front, Japan's producer prices were up 0.7% on the month in May, surpassing expectations of a 0.4% increase, and exceeding the upwardly revised 0.5% gain in April (initially 0.3%). Year-over-year, producer prices climbed 2.4%, again surpassing predictions of a 2.0% rise and accelerating from the upwardly revised 1.1% gain from the previous month (initially 0.9%). The export price index rose 0.1% on the month, and the import price index increased 0.9%.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 157 yen range on Wednesday.
Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong is down 1.7%, while Singapore and Indonesia are down 0.2% and 0.1%, respectively. Meanwhile, New Zealand, South Korea, Malaysia, and Taiwan are up between 0.1% and 0.5% each. China's market is relatively flat. On Wall Street, stock indexes started with declines on Tuesday but turned mixed as the session progressed. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 rebounded from early weaknesses to reach new record highs, while the Dow remained in negative territory.The Nasdaq surged by 151.07 points, or 0.9%, reaching 17,343.55. Similarly, the S&P 500 increased by 14.53 points, or 0.3%, closing at 5,375.32. However, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined by 120.62 points, or 0.3%, to finish at 38,747.42.
In Europe, major markets experienced a downturn. The French CAC 40 Index dropped by 1.3%, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index decreased by 1.0%, and Germany's DAX Index fell by 0.7%.
Crude oil prices slightly improved on Tuesday, driven by cautious sentiment ahead of inventory data and the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for July rose by $0.16, settling at $77.90 per barrel.
