Asian markets diverge as U.S. CPI elevates Fed rate hike expectations; Bitcoin drops below $73.5K
Asian equity markets delivered a mixed performance following overnight pressure on Wall Street, where hotter-than-expected U.S. inflation data cemented expectations for a Federal Reserve rate hike.Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.48% to 61,360 level, with the Japanese yen weakened toward 159 per dollar. South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI rose 2.46% to around 5,368.14. The South Korean won strengthened to around 1,336 per dollar. Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index () fell 0.68%, to around 24,573.00, and mainland China’s Shanghai Composite () up 0.22% to 24,402, while the Shenzhen Component rose 0.74% to 11,326.71. The offshore yuan . Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 () advanced 0.27% to 9,153.20, supported by the Australian dollar traded below $0.69, hovering at its lowest level since late March.In Japan, domestic sentiment was buoyed by the Reuters Tankan index for manufacturers, which rose to +27 in November, its fourth consecutive monthly gain and the highest reading since August 2021.In Australia, Q3 dwelling finance data showed new owner-occupier loan commitments fell 5.3% Q/Q to AUD 56.45 billion.Gold prices traded below $4,050 per ounce, while crude oil stabilized above $86 per barrel. Bitcoin fell below $73,500, its lowest since mid-August, under pressure from sticky U.S. inflation figures.US stock indices after hotter-than-expected U.S. inflation data lifted bets of further Fed rate hikes.Following lower main sessions on Wall Street, U.S. equity futures rebounded as strong earnings results from neocloud infrastructure provider CoreWeave re-energized artificial intelligence sector sentiment.Content provided by Seeking Alpha is intended for information purposes only, and that Seeking Alpha does not offer any personalist investment advice and is not a licensed securities dealer, broker, US investment adviser or investment bank.