© Reuters. Asia and Pacific stock markets close with no single direction, after Fed minutes
Stock markets in Asia and the Pacific closed without a single direction this Thursday, the 23rd, while investors digested the latest monetary policy minutes from the Federal Reserve (Fed, the US central bank) and the decision of the South Korean BC to maintain its interest rates . In Seoul, the stock index advanced 0.89%, to 2,439.09 points, after the Bank of Korea (BoK) left its basic interest rate unchanged at 3.5%, interrupting a sequence of increases that began in April last year.
In mainland China, markets had modest losses: the fell 0.11%, to 3,287.48 points, and the less comprehensive Composite retreated 0.24%, to 2,154.73 points.
Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong fell 0.35% to 20,351.35 points, while Taiex rose 1.28% in Taiwan to 15,615.41 points. In Tokyo, there was no business on Thursday due to a national holiday in Japan.
The Asian region’s mixed behavior came a day after the Fed’s minutes showed that the US central bank remains committed to fighting inflation with higher interest rates. The document, however, did not change bets that the Fed will maintain moderation and raise interest rates by another 25 basis points in March. In recent weeks, there has been speculation about a possible more aggressive increase next month, of 50 basis points.
In the wake of the minutes, the New York stock exchanges closed mixed and with modest variations on Wednesday. In Oceania, the Australian stock exchange was in the red this Thursday, pressured by shares of companies with greater market capitalization. The fell 0.40% in Sydney, at 7,285.40 points. With information from Dow Jones Newswires.