Federal Reserve hike, Bank of Japan, interest rates, currencies

The Bank of Japan kept interest rates unchanged, according to an announcement on its website – meeting expectations expected by Economists in a Reuters poll.

The Japanese yen fell to 145 against the dollar shortly after the decision.

“The Japanese economy rebounded as the resumption of economic activity progressed while public health was protected from Covid-19, although it was affected by factors such as higher commodity prices,” the central bank said in the statement.

–Ji Lee

Stock markets are down but the fund managed by Patrick Armstrong at Plurimi Wealth continues to generate positive returns. The fund manager owns a number of short positions to deal with market volatility.

Professional subscribers can Read more here.

– Xavier Ong

Currencies in the Asia-Pacific region witnessed further weakness after the US Federal Reserve raised interest rates for the third time in a row by 75 basis points.

Chinese mainland yuan It weakened past 7.09 against the dollar, hovering near levels not seen since June 2020.

Japanese yen Weakened to 144.51, while the Korean win – win It also jumped by 1,409 against the dollar – its lowest level since March 2009.

The Australian dollar fell to $0.6589.

– Jie Lee

The British pound Further decline in Asian morning trade, reaching $1.1217 – its lowest level since 1985.

The currency has lost ground against the US dollar this year as economic concerns grow.

Analysts are divided Whether the BoE will raise interest rates by 50 basis points or 75 basis points later today.

The British pound was last traded at $1.1223.

– Abigail Ng

Morgan Stanley’s Mike Wilson remains on the defensive amid ongoing market volatility this year. Names the main feature he looks for in a stock.

Stocks with this trait have been “rewarded” this year, and the trend will likely continue until the market turns more bullish, according to Wilson.

Professional subscribers can Read more here.

– Xavier Ong

DBS Group Research said in a note on Tuesday that significant adjustments in the Bank of Japan’s policies are likely to occur only after the central bank’s leadership changes in mid-2023.

But analysts wrote that the BoJ may consider some “policy tuning”, such as expanding its target range by 10 basis points, in response to market pressures.

She added that “regardless of interference” yen dollar It could test 147.66 last seen in August 1998, adding that they do not rule out a rally in the USD/JPY back above 150 “without the sharp drop in the US prompting the Fed to cut.”

– Abigail Ng

US stock futures fell Wednesday night after a choppy session in the major averages as traders weighed another big rate hike from the Federal Reserve.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 16 points, or 0.05%. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures declined 0.19% and 0.31%, respectively.

– Sarah Min

Stocks fell on Wednesday but ended the session deep in the red after the Federal Reserve announced another 75 basis point interest rate hike.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 522.45 points, or 1.7%, to close at 30,183.78 points. The S&P 500 fell 1.71% to 3789.93 and the Nasdaq Composite fell 1.79% to 11220.19.

– Samantha Sobin