The Bank of Korea’s logo hangs on top of the Bank of Korea’s headquarters building in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, August 16, 2018. Prices are forecast to rise to their highest levels since 2008.
Joan Bell | Bloomberg | Getty Images
SINGAPORE – Asia-Pacific markets opened mostly higher on Friday, breaking an overnight session on Wall Street as key benchmarks slipped as investors digested a troublesome U.S. inflation report.
Asian investors are also keeping an eye on the Bank of Korea’s interest rate decision on Friday. The Bank of Korea lowered its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.25%, its first rate cut since 2020.
The rate cut came as South Korea’s inflation rate fell to 1.6% in September, the lowest level since early 2021 and below the central bank’s medium-term target of 2%.
Mainland China’s CSI 300 blue-chip index fell 0.8%, as stimulus-driven gains continued to lose momentum. Hong Kong markets were closed on Friday for a public holiday.
China’s Ministry of Finance estimates A press conference will be held on Saturday 10 a.m. local time. The highly anticipated briefing is expected to unveil a new fiscal stimulus package as Beijing attempts to boost the economy.
Concern grows as households and car owners increase fuel use ahead of Hurricane Milton Middle East conflict could heighten risks to Iran’s oil base.
Brent crude futures fell 0.35% to $79.11 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 0.34% to $75.6 a barrel.
Japanese Nikkei 225 Index It opened up 0.7%, while the Topix edged up 0.4%.
South Korean blue-chip Kospi rose 0.45% and small-cap Kosdaq rose 0.38%.
Australian S&P/ASX 200 Index down 0.09%.
In the US stock market overnight, the S&P 500 index fell 0.21% to close at 5,780.05 points; the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.14% to close at 42,454.12 points. The Nasdaq fell 0.05% to close at 18,282.05 points.
The U.S. consumer price index increased by 0.2% monthly, and the annual inflation rate reached 2.4% compared with the previous year. A Reuters survey showed that the inflation data was higher than expectations for a monthly increase of 0.1% and an annual increase of 2.3%.
Although the annual inflation rate is the lowest since February 2021, it has heightened concerns that the Federal Reserve may slow the pace of future interest rate cuts.
—CNBC’s Samantha Subin and Hakyung Kim contributed to this report.
About The Author
