On May 2, 2022, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) was in the central bank building in Sydney, Australia.
Brendan Thorne | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were mostly lower on Wednesday as investors assessed Australian April inflation data and Japanese consumer confidence data.
Australia’s weighted consumer price index rises Annual growth of 3.6% in April That was higher than the 3.4% rise forecast in a Reuters poll. The reading was also higher than the 3.5% reported in March.
ING analysts said in a preview report last week: “Australia has released another bad inflation report, and we will consider canceling the final rate cut by the Reserve Bank of Australia in the fourth quarter of this year. With two more, we may consider raising rates.” interest.
The Australian S&P/ASX 200 Index CPI fell 1.3% after the announcement, closing at 7,665.6.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index It fell 0.77% to 38,556.87 points, while the Topix fell 0.97% to close at 2,741.62 points. Both indexes reversed lower from the open.
Korean Cospi The stock fell 1.67% to close at 2,677.3 points, dragged down by heavyweight Samsung Electronics, which fell 3.09% after one of its labor unions announced a strike. The small-cap Kosdaq fell 1.48%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.67%, leading Asian stocks lower, while mainland China’s CSI 300 Index rose 0.12% to close at 3,613.52 points, Asia’s only major benchmark index to post major gains.
Overnight in America, Nasdaq Index Technology stocks rose 7%, reaching new highs, surpassing 17,000 points Nvidia.
this S&P 500 Index Only a slight increase of 0.02%, while Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.55%.
While Nvidia’s gains masked problems for the broader market, the blue-chip Dow Jones was weighed down by the stock market’s decline. Merck and other health care stocks.
Meanwhile, more than 350 stocks in the S&P 500 index declined. The index’s healthcare, industrials and financials sectors all fell more than 1%.
—CNBC’s Brian Evans and Jesse Pound contributed to this report.
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