In a photo taken on November 4, 2019, a subway train crosses a railway bridge over the Han River in front of the skyline of Yeouido business district in Seoul.
Ed Jones | AFP | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were mostly higher on Monday, led by Japanese stocks Nikkei 225 Index Stocks rose nearly 2% as investors awaited decisions from the region’s central banks throughout the week.
The rise in the Nikkei was driven by financial and consumer cyclical stocks such as Mizuho Financial Group and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Ranked among the top gainers in the index.
this JPY It rose 0.16% to end at 148.46, after hitting its lowest level in more than two months. The dollar rose after a strong U.S. jobs report on Friday, which also reduced expectations that the Federal Reserve will need to cut interest rates by another 50 basis points.
The yen was also under pressure after Japan’s new Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said he “does not believe the environment is ready for further interest rate hikes by the Bank of Japan.”
Three major central banks, the Bank of Korea, the Bank of New Zealand and the Bank of India, will release interest rate decisions this week.
Economists polled by Reuters expect the Bank of Korea and the Bank of New Zealand to cut interest rates, while the Bank of India will keep rates unchanged.
The Bank of Korea is expected to cut its benchmark interest rate from 3.5% to 3.25% on Friday, while the Bank of New Zealand is expected to cut its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points to 4.75% on Wednesday.
Back in August, the Federal Reserve Bank of New Zealand surprising economists After cutting the policy rate from 5.5% to 5.25%.
In the United States, stocks rose on Friday after a stronger-than-expected jobs report gave investors confidence in the health of the economy.
Data shows nonfarm payroll employment grown up 254,000 jobs were added in September, far exceeding the 150,000 job gain predicted by economists polled by Dow Jones. The unemployment rate fell slightly to 4.1%, although the unemployment rate is expected to hold steady at 4.2%.
this S&P 500 Index rose 0.9%, while Nasdaq Index up 1.22%. this Dow Jones Industrial Average It rose 0.81% and hit a record closing high of 42,352.75 points.
—CNBC’s Lisa Kailai Han and Alex Harring contributed to this report.
