Markets in Asia were mostly lower Wednesday, after oil prices slid to two-month lows and investors stayed cautious before the Federal Reserve concludes a two-day policy meeting.
The Nikkei 225 recovered 125.98 points, or 0.7%, to 18,903.02, amid expectations that the Bank of Japan will introduce more easing later in the week.
The Japanese yen was last at 120.41 yen, roughly flat compared with its close in Asia on Tuesday. The currency traded as strong as 120.14 yen against the dollar a day earlier, after the South China Sea news sent investors toward haven assets.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng dropped 186.16 points, or 0.8%, to 22,956.57
Chinese energy shares listed in Hong Kong fell, with China Shenhua Energy Co. and China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. down 2.8% and 1.6%, respectively.
In Australia, Santos Ltd. fell 4.8% and Woodside Petroleum Ltd. was 2.6% lower.
The Australian dollar fell more than 1% to as low as $0.7109 Wednesday after disappointing Australian inflation data boosted expectations that the central bank may cut interest rates at its meeting next week. The currency was last at $0.7122 U.S.
Third-quarter inflation rose 0.5% on-quarter, compared with a 0.7% increase expected by economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal. Consumer prices rose 1.5% on-year. The market now is pricing in about a 70% chance that the Reserve Bank of Australia will cut rates at its policy meeting next week, up from 25% Tuesday.
Shares in the region have been lackluster this week, before the Fed concludes its two-day policy meeting on Wednesday. Although the central bank is widely expected to leave benchmark interest rates unchanged near zero, investors will parse the Fed’s post-meeting statement for clues about the path of its monetary policy.
In Australia, shares of National Bank of Australia Ltd. were down 2.2%, after the firm unveiled a deal to sell control of its life-insurance business and plans to exit its U.K. business early next year. The firm also said its full year net profit rose 20% to 6.34 billion Australian dollars ($4.56 billion U.S.).
In South Korea, battery maker LG Chem Ltd. rallied 5% after the local Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported that the firm is in the final stage of becoming a lithium-ion batteries supplier to Tesla Motors. The stock rose as much as 7.3% during the trading day.
An LG spokesman declined to confirm the report, but Tesla told The Wall Street Journal Wednesday it had a contract earlier this year with LG for upgrades to the U.S. electric vehicle maker’s first car, the Roadster, which has since been discontinued.
After the market close in Japan, Nintendo Co. reported an operating profit of 8.98 billion yen ($74.6 million U.S.) in the April-to-September period, buoyed by its core game business and game-interactive figurines and cards. The gains were a turnaround from a loss of 215 million yen a year ago, but lower than analysts’ expectations of a 14.4-billion-yen profit.
Nintendo shares have surged 83% year to date, beating the broader market’s 8% gain.
CHINA
The CSI 300 in Shanghai skidded 67.96 points, or 1.9 %, to 3,524.92
In China, the defense sector fell 5% as investors cashed in on a jump of more than 7% the previous session. The sector rallied Tuesday after a U.S. Navy ship sailed close to artificial islands in the South China Sea claimed by China, escalating territorial tensions.
Near-term performance also will depend on whether leaders reveal new plans to boost the sector at their economic meeting in Beijing this week, according to analysts.
In other markets
The Kospi index in Korea lost 2.14 points, or 0.1%, to 2,042.51
Taiwan’s Taiex index moved lower 35.73 points, or 0.4%, to 8,665.99
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index erased 67.96 points, or 1.9%, to 3,040.51
The NZX 50 slipped 2.04 points to 5,998.99.
The ASX 200 fell 10.93 points, or 0.2%, to 5,335.22
