The Sydney Opera House Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
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Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed on Tuesday as investors prepared for the U.S. presidential election and a possible interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve later this week.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 added 0.68% in its first hour of trade, while the Topix inched up 0.33%. South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.67%, while the Kosdaq gained 0.25%. The country’s consumer inflation in October rose 1.3% from a year ago, slightly cooler than Reuters’ expectations of 1.4%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures were at 20,658, slightly higher than the HSI’s last close of 20,567.52.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slid 0.56% as traders keep an eye on the upcoming central bank rate decision. Analysts at HSBC and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia expect the Reserve Bank of Australia to leave the cash rate unchanged.
Overnight in the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average slumped 257.59 points, or 0.61%, to close at 41,794.60. The S&P 500 dipped 0.28% to settle at 5,712.69, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.33% to 18,179.98.
The moves in stocks Monday came as safe-haven U.S. Treasurys rallied, suggesting that some investors may be reducing risk ahead of Election Day.
In addition to the election, Wall Street is preparing for the Federal Reserve’s upcoming rate decision on Thursday. According to CME Group’s FedWatch Tool, traders anticipate a 99% chance of a quarter-point rate cut at the end of the central bank’s policy meeting, following a half-percentage-point reduction in September.
—CNBC’s Jesse Pound and Samantha Subin contributed to this report.