A view of the Bank of Japan’s headquarters in Tokyo.
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Asia Pacific markets were mixed on Monday after better-than-expected U.S. employment data released on Friday showed job and wage growth accelerated in May.
That reinforces the view that the Fed is in no rush to cut interest rates. Traders don’t expect the Federal Open Market Committee to cut rates when it meets this week or next in July.
In Asia this week, investors will focus on Japan’s first-quarter GDP figures on Monday, followed by the Bank of Japan’s interest rate decision on Friday.
Meanwhile, inflation figures for China and India for May are also due to be released on Wednesday.
| Ticker | company | name | price | change | %change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| .N225 | Nikkei Stock Average | Nikkei | 38,819.76 | +135.83 | +0.35% |
| .HSI | Hang Seng Index | HSI | 18,366.95 | -109.85 | -0.59% |
| .AXJO | S&P/ASX 200 | ASX 200 | 7,860.00 | +38.20 | +0.49% |
| .SSEC | Shanghai | Shanghai | 3,051.28 | +2.48 | +0.08% |
| .KS11 | KOSPI Index | Korea Composite Stock Price Index | 2,700.55 | -22.12 | -0.81% |
| .FTFCNBCA | CNBC 100 Asia IDX | CNBC 100 | 9,724.99 | -37.28 | -0.38% |
Japan’s Nikkei stock average rose 0.19% at the open, while the Tokyo Stock Price Index rose 0.38%.
In contrast, South Korea’s KOSPI fell 1% and the small-cap KOSDAQ lost 0.5%.
Several Asian markets, including in Australia, mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, will be closed on Monday for public holidays.
On Wall Street on Friday, the S&P 500 ended flat after hitting an intraday record high, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.22% and the Nasdaq Composite Index lost 0.23%.
Despite the declines, all three major indexes had strong weeks: the Dow rose 0.29%, the S&P 500 gained nearly 1.32% and the Nasdaq added 2.38%.
Correction: This story has been updated to correct the date of the Federal Reserve’s June meeting.
