Asian investors look to the US with concern.
(Photo: dpa)
Hong Kong Speculation that US interest rates might rise faster than expected hit the Asian stock exchanges on Thursday. The Nikkei index, which comprises 225 values, lost 2.9 percent to 28,487 points. The broader Topix index fell 2.1 percent.
In China, too, things went downhill. The Shanghai Stock Exchange fell 0.3 percent, the index of the most important companies in Shanghai and Shenzen fell by one percent.
The Fed’s monetary watchdogs hinted at faster rate hikes in the face of the surge in inflation in the Fed minutes. On Wall Street, too, things had clearly gone downhill after the minutes had been published. “The interest fears are back,” said Christian Henke from the online broker IG.
Carlos Casanova, chief Asian economist at Union Bancaire Privee in Hong Kong, described the fears: There is a risk that the Fed will fall into a trap by raising rates faster than expected. Because “the timing of their exit from ultra-easy monetary policy could coincide with a slowdown in the business cycle and also a fall in inflation due to base effects,” he said.
Top jobs of the day
Find the best jobs now and
be notified by email.
“Of course, pricing in a faster rate of Fed tapering will not do well on Asian assets, so there will likely be more outflows in the region, reflected in both weaker stocks and devaluation pressures The currency front will be reflected ”, added Casanova.
In Asian foreign exchange trading, the dollar lost 0.2 percent to 115.85 yen and rose 0.2 percent to 6.3736 yuan. In relation to the Swiss currency, it was quoted 0.1 percent higher at 0.9174 francs. At the same time, the euro remained almost unchanged at 1.1313 dollars and rose 0.1 percent to 1.0380 francs. The pound sterling fell 0.2 percent to $ 1.3534.
China’s service sector picked up in December
China’s service sector growth accelerated in December amid higher demand and easing inflationary pressures. The Caixin / Markit Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for the service sector rose from 52.1 in November to 53.1 in December, staying above the 50-point mark that separates growth from contraction on a monthly basis.
According to analysts, the service sector is recovering more slowly from the pandemic than manufacturing as it is more prone to isolated virus outbreaks, with recreational and tourism businesses being hardest hit as a result of restrictions and lockdowns.
“Both supply and demand have improved. As new products helped improve the mood in the market, both business and total new business increased for the fourth month in a row. However, the companies surveyed expressed concern about the disruptions caused by the isolated occurrence of regional Covid-19 infections, “wrote Wang Zhe, chief economist at Caixin Insight Group, in a note accompanying the data.
More: Fed minutes dampen sentiment on Wall Street – tech stocks clearly under pressure