Stocks in Asia traded lower Friday morning, amid expectations the U.S. Federal Reserve could be less aggressive than expected with monetary policy when it meets next week.
The Nikkei 225 in Japan slipped 0.35% in early trade, as shares of index heavyweight Softbank Group rose 0.77% after the conglomerate announced that it will set up Vision Fund 2, the sequel to its landmark investment fund. The Topix index declined 0.41%
Shares of automaker Nissan Motor dropped more than 2%, after the company announced Thursday it would slash 12,500 jobs worldwide following a 95.5% drop in its first-quarter operating profit.
In South Korea, the Kospi declined 0.45%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 also shed 0.38% as most of the sectors fell.
Overall, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index slipped 0.21%.
Meanwhile, investors await market reaction in Hong Kong when it opens at 9:30 a.m. HK/SIN, after the city reported that it saw its biggest annual drop in exports in almost three and a half years in June.
Asia-Pacific Market Indexes Chart
Overnight stateside, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 128.99 points lower at 27,140.98, while the S&P 500 shed 0.5% to end its trading day at 3,003.67. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 1% to close at 8,238.54.
Concerns rose that the Fed may be less aggressive than expected on monetary policy when it meets next week. That came after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said the risk of a recession in the region was low despite earlier signalling a rate cut and more monetary easing ahead.
Some traders took this to mean the central bank would not be as aggressive in its easing measures and that the Fed could follow suit when it meets next week.
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 97.793 after falling below 97.6 yesterday.
The Japanese yen, widely viewed as a safe-haven currency, traded at 108.72 against the dollar after weakening sharply from levels below 108.4 in the previous session. The Australian dollar was at $0.6947 after slipping from levels above $0.696 yesterday.
Oil prices were mixed in the morning of Asian trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures slipping 0.21% to $63.26 per barrel, while U.S. crude futures advanced slightly to $56.04 per barrel.
Here’s a look at what’s ahead for the day
- Indonesia: Exports, regional GDP
- Japan: Earnings for Fuji Electric, Tokyo Electron, NTT Docomo, Kansai Electric
- South Korea: Samsung Engineering earnings
— CNBC’s Fred Imbert contributed to this report.
