Jan 13 2025, 09:09
Asia-Pacific markets traded lower Monday, after U.S. jobs report on Friday dampened investors’ hopes for early interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.6%, trading below 19,000 for the first time since last September, data from LSEG showed. Mainland China’s benchmark CSI 300 dropped 0.75%, having closed at its lowest level since September 2024 on Friday.
China is slated to release its December trade data later in the day, while India is expected to report its inflation numbers.
Japan markets are closed for a holiday. South Korea’s Kospi
lost 0.85% while the Kosdaq dipped 0.53%.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 1.17%.
Investors in Asia will continue to keep an eye on Chinese bond yields after the country’s central bank suspended purchases of government bonds last Friday. China’s 10-year bond yield plunged to a record low this month.
The country’s onshore yuan hit a 16-month low against the dollar last week, while the offshore yuan has been on a multi-month slide since last September.
Looking to the rest of this week, the Bank of Korea is expected to meet this Thursday, and Australia is slated to post its unemployment rate for December on the same day. China will be posting its GDP for the fourth quarter of 2024 on Friday, alongside retail sales and industrial output data.(Cay) newsmaker23
Source: CNBC
