Asia markets jump on fresh fed cut hopes

November 24, 2025 (MLN): Asia-Pacific equities opened the week with solid gains after New York Federal Reserve President John Williams hinted that a third rate cut could still be delivered this year.

Williams cautioned on Friday that mounting weakness in the labor market now presents a greater risk to the U.S. economy than elevated inflation, reinforcing expectations for further monetary easing, according to CNBC.

The Fed’s final meeting of 2025 is scheduled for Dec. 9–10, with the benchmark interest rate currently set between 3.75% and 4.00%.

Market sentiment quickly shifted following Williams’ comments, with Fed funds futures now projecting nearly a 70% likelihood of a 25-basis-point reduction a sharp increase from around 44% during the week ending Nov. 14.

The upbeat session comes after a broad sell-off across Asian markets last week, where major tech names such as SoftBank, Samsung Electronics and Baidu weighed on regional indexes.

South Korea’s Kospi surged 1.56%, supported by a strong rebound in Samsung Electronics, which climbed more than 4.4%. However, the tech-heavy Kosdaq slipped slightly after early gains.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.12%, recovering from Friday’s 1.59% decline.

Shares of logistics operator Qube jumped nearly 20% after receiving an acquisition proposal worth 11.6bn Australian dollars ($7.49bn) from Macquarie Asset Management.

Mining major BHP added around 0.4% after confirming it was no longer pursuing a merger with Anglo American.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index advanced 1.41%, boosted by strength in technology and healthcare counters.

Mainland China’s CSI 300 hovered just below unchanged levels. Japanese markets were closed for a public holiday.

U.S. stocks finished Friday higher across the board, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.08%.

The Nasdaq Composite gained 0.88%, while the S&P 500 closed 0.98% stronger, helping set a positive tone for markets at the start of the week.

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