Asian markets showed mixed performance following declines on Wall Street, driven by losses in technology stocks.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.6% to 38,358.68, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.5% to 8,444.30. In South Korea, the Kospi remained mostly flat at 2,503.91 after the central bank lowered its benchmark interest rate to alleviate economic pressures.
The Bank of Korea cut its key rate by 0.25 percentage points to 3%, while revising its economic growth forecast downward. Growth expectations for 2024 were adjusted from 2.4% to 2.2%, and for 2025 from 2.1% to 1.9%.
In China, equities declined as investors locked in gains from recent rallies. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 1.3% to 19,345.02, and the Shanghai Composite slipped 0.4% to 3,295.41.
U.S. markets are closed today for Thanksgiving and will reopen for a shortened session on Friday. On Wednesday, Wall Street indices fell, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.3% to 44,722.06, the S&P 500 losing 0.4% to 5,998.74, and the Nasdaq Composite declining 0.6% to 19,060.48.
In the bond market, the yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury note decreased to 4.248% from 4.302% on Tuesday.
