Asian shares fall on concerns about inflation

Asian stock markets fell on Thursday due to mixed signals from central banks and concerns about inflation, as geopolitical tensions between China and Taiwan added to the negative sentiment, Reuters reported.

Key benchmarks

• The CSI 300 index in China, representing blue-chip stocks, fell 0.9 per cent.
• Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index slid 1.4 per cent.
• The broader MSCI Asia Pacific Index excluding Japan dipped 0.26 per cent.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index lost 0.5 per cent.

Recent hawkish signals from the Federal Reserve, higher-than-expected inflation in the UK, and a cautious outlook from New Zealand’s central bank have prompted investors to reconsider their expectations for significant global interest rate cuts.

Meanwhile, US stock futures received a boost. Chipmaker Nvidia forecasted strong quarterly revenue, sending its shares up 5.9 per cent in after-hours trading. S&P 500 futures rose 0.6 per cent, while Nasdaq futures surged 0.95 per cent.

Other Markets

• Taiwan’s tech-heavy stock index hit a record high, gaining 0.25 per cent.
• Japan’s Nikkei jumped 1.2 per cent on a weaker yen.
• European futures also edged up slightly.
• Oil prices fell modestly, with Brent crude down 0.56 per cent and US crude edging 0.7 per cent lower.
• Gold prices dipped slightly 0.2 per cent to $2,372.93 an ounce.