Asian stocks declined and the dollar hovered near a two-year high on Thursday following the U.S. Federal Reserve's indication that it would slow the pace of rate cuts next year. Meanwhile, the yen weakened after the Bank of Japan maintained interest rates. The Fed's hawkish stance triggered a drop in Wall Street, and Asian markets mirrored this decline, with the MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares excluding Japan falling 1.6%. Tech-heavy Taiwan stocks shed 1.
2%, and Australian shares tumbled nearly 2%. This negative sentiment is anticipated to extend to Europe, with Eurostoxx 50 futures down 1.5%, German DAX futures 1.2% lower, and FTSE futures sliding 1%. The yen reached a one-month low of 155.48 per dollar following the BOJ's decision to keep rates steady, as predicted. The Japanese currency traded around 155.3 to the dollar, near the weaker end of its range this year, pressured by a strong dollar and a substantial interest rate disadvantage. The yen has depreciated more than 8% in 2024 against the dollar and is on track for a fourth consecutive year of decline. Investors will now concentrate on comments from BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda to assess not only the timing of the next rate hike but also the magnitude of increases next year. Traders currently anticipate 46 basis points of BOJ hikes by the end of 2025. Ueda is expected to hold a press conference at 0630 GMT to elaborate on the decision. Board member Naoki Tamura dissented and advocated raising interest rates to 0.5%, citing growing inflationary risks, but his proposal was rejected. 'The hawkish Fed dot plot overnight gave the BOJ an option to increase rates, and there was one dissenting vote for a 25 bps hike, so it looks like rates will be going up early in 2025,' said Ben Bennett, Asia-Pacific investment strategist at Legal and General Investment Management
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