On January 11, 2024, data from the Nikkei 225 Index was displayed on the screen at the trading floor of Nomura Securities Co. headquarters in Tokyo, Japan.
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Asia-Pacific markets were mixed on Monday as Israel and Hezbollah carried out strikes on Sunday, while investors assessed dovish comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.
Powell said on Friday he would cut the federal funds rate, but he did not say how much or when.
“Now is the time to adjust policy,” the central bank chief said in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. “The way forward is clear and the timing and pace of rate cuts will depend on incoming data, the evolving outlook and the balance of risks.”
Over the weekend, the Israeli air force struck Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, shortly after the Iranian-backed armed group fired more than 320 rockets into Israel.
Hezbollah said it was in retaliation for Israel’s assassination of senior commander Fuad Shukr last month.
However, the group said it was not prepared to launch more attacks, while Israel’s foreign minister said the country did not want an all-out war.
In Asia, investors will assess China’s central bank’s medium-term lending rate and Singapore’s manufacturing data for July on Monday.
Japanese Nikkei 225 Index It fell 0.91% in early trading, with the Topix falling 0.83%.
South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.22%, while the small-cap Kosdaq edged up 0.19%.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index opened the day up 0.34%.
Hongkong Hang Seng Index The futures index was at 17,733 points, higher than the Hang Seng Index’s last closing price of 17,612.1 points.
On Friday, after Powell’s speech, all three major U.S. stock indexes rose, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising 1.14% and the Nasdaq Index rising 1.47%. The S&P 500 rose 1.15%.
—CNBC’s Alex Harring and Yun Li contributed to this report.
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