A pedestrian looks at an electronic stock board displaying the Nikkei 225 Stock Average outside a securities firm in Tokyo, Japan. Picture: BLOOMBERG/KIYOSHI OTA
Markets are almost certain the Fed will taper but are looking to see if policymakers will give any hints about the possibility of interest rate hikes next year. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 0.33% in early trading on Thursday. Japanese markets were closed for a public holiday.
Moves in currency markets were muted on Thursday. The dollar kept within sight of its recent highs against the yen and euro.