Asia shares turn cagey as rate hikes, earnings loom

S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures both eased 0.3%, while EUROSTOXX 50 futures and FTSE futures dipped 0.2%.

Investors are confident the Federal Reserve will raise rates by 25 basis points on Wednesday, followed the day after by half-point hikes from the Bank of England and European Central Bank, and any deviation from that script would be a real shock. Just as important will be the guidance on future policy with analysts expecting a hawkish message of inflation is not yet beaten and more needs to be done."With U.S. labor markets still tight, core inflation elevated, and financial conditions easing, Fed Chair Powell's tone will be hawkish, stressing that a downshifting to a 25bp hike doesn't mean a pause is coming," said Bruce Kasman, chief economist at JPMorgan, who expects another rise in March.

That dovish outlook will also be tested by data on U.S. payrolls, the employment cost index and various ISM surveys. Figures on EU inflation could be important for whether the ECB signals a half-point rate rise for March, or opens the door to slowdown in the pace of tightening.

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