Asia-Pacific markets set to open higher as investors await Australia rate decision
The full moon, otherwise known as a strawberry supermoon, is seen over the Skyline of the CBD in Sydney, Australia June 15, 2022.
Steven Saphore | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were set to open mostly higher Tuesday, following losses on Wall Street that saw the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite pull back from record highs ahead of key inflation data.
Traders in Asia await the interest rate decision from Australia later in the day. A poll from Reuters expects the Reserve Bank of Australia to hold the benchmark rate at 4.35% for the 10th consecutive time.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 opened flat.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 futures pointed to a higher open for the market, with the futures contract in Chicago at 39,305 and its counterpart in Osaka at 39,310 compared to the previous close of 39,160.5.
Hong Kong Hang Seng index futures were at 21,359 higher than the HSI’s last close of 20,414.09.
In the U.S. on Monday, tech shares struggled and investors prepared for key inflation data that will be released this week.
The broad market S&P 500 fell 0.61% to close at 6,052.85, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq slid 0.62% to end at 19,736.69. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 240.59 points, or 0.54%, settling at 44,401.93.
AI bellwether Nvidia saw its shares dropped about 2.6% after a Chinese regulator announced that it was investigating the artificial intelligence chip behemoth for potentially violating the country’s antitrust law.
Advanced Micro Devices, another chipmaker, closed 5.6% lower, while tech giants Meta Platforms and Netflix also struggled.
Bitcoin prices also retreated after topping $100,000 for the first time ever last week, a sign that investors might be souring on risk assets.
— CNBC’s Sean Conlon and Sarah Min contributed to this report.