Customers shopping for vegetables at a supermarket in Nanjing, China.
Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were set to fall Thursday after U.S. stocks ended a choppy session slightly higher as the Federal Reserve meeting minutes signaled interest rates could stay higher for longer due to sticky inflation.
Investors in Asia also await China’s inflation data for December. Economists polled by Reuters expect growth in consumer prices to remain near zero while producer prices are estimated to slide.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 was set to fall, with the futures contract in Chicago at 39,950 and its counterpart in Osaka last trading at 39,950 against the index’s previous close of 39,981.06.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged down 0.32%.
In contrast, futures for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index last traded at 19,264, pointing to a lower open compared to the HSI’s close of 19,279.84.
Overnight stateside, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average posted narrow gains after the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s December meeting revealed most committee members see inflation risks have increased.
The U.S. 10-yar Treasury yields briefly topped 4.7%, as the inflation outlook fueled investors’ concerns that the Fed may slow the pace of policy easing this year.
The broad market index gained 0.16% to close at 5,918.25, while the Dow added 0.25% to finish at 42,635.20. The Nasdaq Composite was little moved, ending at 19,478.88.
— CNBC’s Pia Singh and Sean Conlon contributed to this report.