Shanghai Pudong district at sunrise
Dukai Photographer | Moment | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets fell after the U.S. Federal Reserve signaled it was unlikely to cut rates in March.
Overnight, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank would likely not be comfortable enough with the path of inflation by its next meeting in March to cut interest rates.
“Based on the meeting today, I would tell you that I don’t think it’s likely that the committee will reach a level of confidence by the time of the March meeting to identify March as the time to do that. But that’s to be seen,” Powell said.
In Asia, investors will assess private surveys on business activity for January across the region, most notably, the Caixin purchasing managers index out from China.
Economists polled by Reuters expect the Caixin manufacturing PMI to come in at 50.6, an expansionary figure compared with official figures of 49.2 released on Wednesday.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 slipped 1.3%, on track to snap an eight-day winning streak and retreating from an all-time high.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.7%, while the Topix was 0.6% higher. In South Korea, the Kospi was 0.6% higher, while the small-cap Kosdaq shed 1.6%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index opened 0.3% lower, while China’s CSI 300 fell 0.4% at open, languishing near 5-year lows.
In the U.S., all three major indexes lost ground after the Fed announcement, with the Nasdaq Composite leading losses and tumbling 2.23%.
The broad-market S&P 500 fell 1.61%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.82%.
— CNBC’s Brian Evans and Hakyung Kim contributed to this report.