Asia markets mostly higher as investors weigh China’s lending rate hold

September 22, 2025 (MLN): Asia markets traded mostly in positive territory on Monday as it mirrored Wall Street’s record-setting gains last week, as investors digested China’s latest interest rate decision.

China’s CSI 300 index opened flat after the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) kept its benchmark loan prime rates (LPR) unchanged for the fourth consecutive month, in line with market expectations.

The one-year LPR was maintained at 3%, while the five-year rate a key reference for mortgages stayed at 3.5%.

The decision came shortly after the U.S. Federal Reserve cut its key rate by 25 basis points, marking a divergence in monetary policy, according to CNBC.

Elsewhere, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index slipped 0.3%, with the Hang Seng Tech Index falling 0.47%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 1.28%, while the broader Topix rose 0.8%. Yields on 10-year Japanese government bonds climbed to 1.65%, the highest since July 2007.

South Korea’s Kospi added 0.71% and the small-cap Kosdaq rose 0.9%.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.49% higher.

U.S. equity futures were little changed in early Asian trading after the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 both closed at record highs on Friday.

Markets are now pricing in two additional quarter-point rate cuts by the Fed before year-end, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.

On Wall Street, the Dow gained 172.85 points, or 0.37%, to finish at 46,315.27. The S&P 500 rose 0.49% to 6,664.36, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.72% to 22,631.48  all ending the week on a strong note.

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