Asia markets defy Fed's interest rate hike with solid gains

May 04, 2023 (MLN): Asian markets rose on Thursday, shrugging off the sour mood surrounding the Federal Reserve's announcement that it was raising interest rates yet again and likely keeping them high for the foreseeable future, as APP reported. 

All three major US indices declined along with the dollar after the Fed's hike, while recession worries drove US oil prices below $70 a barrel, where they remained on Thursday.

However, Hong Kong bucked the slide on Wall Street to finish with solid gains of nearly 1.3%, even as its de facto central bank moved to boost rates in line with the Fed. While Shanghai also rose, Chinese shares overall see-sawed throughout the day, with the CSI 300 index ultimately finishing flat amid concerns over an uneven economic recovery.

Taipei, Wellington, Mumbai, Jakarta, Manila, and Singapore were all up, while Sydney was slightly down and Seoul was flat. Tokyo was closed for a holiday.

Attention now shifts to Thursday's meeting of the European Central Bank, which is expected to deliver another rate increase of its own.

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