Asian stocks turn cautious as Fed decision looms

By FXStreet FXStreet (Mumbai) – The Asian equities extend losses for the second day in a row on Wednesday, taking the negative lead from their American counterparts, as nervousness creeps into markets ahead of the much awaited Fed policy announcement due later today.

Nikkei bucks the trend, gains on BOJ easing bets

The Japanese stocks ditched their other Asian counterparts and edged higher, largely on the back of profit-taking after heavy losses seen yesterday. Moreover, growing expectations of BOJ unveiling additional stimulus at Friday’s policy meeting, especially after weak retail sales data, also kept the index buoyed. Meanwhile, USD/JPY trades -0.05% lower at 120.40 and the Nikkei rises 0.60% to 19,890.

The Australian benchmark, the S&P/ASX is posting moderate losses, down -0.12% at 5,339, with weaker mining and banking stocks weighing on the index. While markets also continue to digest the latest Aus CPI figures, which disappointed big time. Australia’s trimmed mean CPI q/q came in at 0.3% versus 0.5% expectations and 0.6% previous.

Stocks on the Chinese indices are also trading lower, with the mainland’s China’s Shanghai Composite index, down -0.40% at 3,420. While Hong Kong’s Hang Seng loses -0.66% to 22,989.
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Source:: FX Street