Asian Market Review

Asian markets are trading broadly higher Thursday morning after the U.S. Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 25 basis points overnight. Up next is the Bank of Japan, which is widely expected to keep its own monetary policy unchanged.

Ahead of the Bank of Japan decision the Nikkei is trading higher by 1.2% in response to more weakness from the Yen, which has been holding above the 108.00 level versus the U.S. dollar.

Nikkei chart

In Australia the S&P/ASX 200 is trading 0.7%, on track to post its fifth winning session over the past six. The big four banks are gaining in the wake of the U.S. rate cut, with ANZ rising 0.7%, NAB adding 0.6%, Commonwealth up 0.6%, and Westpac trading 0.7% higher.

On mainland China the Shanghai Composite has opened to a gain of 0.2%, while the smaller cap Shenzhen Composite is 0.3% higher. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng has also opened higher and is holding onto a 0.3% gain, although it is uncertain if it can remain in positive territory as investors have consistently sent the market lower on protest worries.

In South Korea the Kospi is up by 0.7%, helped higher by a 2.2% gain in shares of index heavy weight Samsung. Meanwhile the Taiex in Taiwan is the only major market that’s slipping in early trade as it has opened to a 0.1% loss.

Southeast Asian markets are mixed, with the KLCI falling for a second consecutive session, posting a loss of 0.3%, while the Straits Times Index in Singapore is 0.4% higher.

KLCI chart