Asian stocks mixed amid caution ahead of Fed rate decision

Asian stock markets started mixed on Tuesday with US futures lower as investors retreated They absorbed quarterly corporate reports and were concerned about an impending interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve this week.

Shares fell in Japan and South Korea, and rose slightly in Australia. US contracts fell about 0.5% after a volatile session on Wall Street that saw a modest rally in the S&P 500.

Confidence was affected by the fall of the giant Retailer Walmart Inc. (WMT) in expanded operations in New York to cut in his Earnings forecast This year it may fuel concerns about corporate outlook as the US economy flirts with recession amid tighter monetary tightening.

Merchants were also considering a move by e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. to order a Hong Kong preliminary list, Which could make its shares more accessible to mainland China investors.

The 10-year Treasury yield was trading at 2.78%. Traders are preparing themselves to sell debt The Fed rate is widely expected to rise by 75 basis points on Wednesday.

The dollar scale fell to its lowest level since early July. The price of crude oil hovered around $96 a barrel. Bitcoin has fallen to the brink of $21,000.

Markets are in sort of a wait mode, concerned not only with the Federal Reserve and the signals from its Chairman Jerome Powell, but also with corporate reports from companies like an apple (AAPL) and the alphabet (google). Other risks include ongoing disruptions to gas supplies to Europe from Russia, as well as Covid-19 restrictions in China.

For Katrina Simonetti, an advisor at Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management, the risk streak reveals just how weak the 6% rally in global stocks from June lows is.

“Most likely it is “The bear market is on the rise and there are still significant risks facing this market,” he said on Bloomberg TV.

By contrast, Ed Yardeni, Yardeni’s head of research, argues that the S&P 500’s plunge last month to a low of 3,666.77 points likely formed the bottom of a stock’s slide in 2022. He cites the resilience of stocks. and companies, even as the US economy slows.

Some of the main events to watch this week:

• Results for Alphabet, Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and Meta will be published this week
• The Bank of Japan will release the minutes of its June meeting on Tuesday
• US New Home Sales, Consumer Confidence, Tuesday
• IMF World Economic Outlook Update, Tuesday
• The emergency meeting of the European Union energy ministers, Tuesday
• Wednesday Fed Policy Decision Brief
• Australian CPI Wednesday
• US GDP, Thursday
• Eurozone CPI on Friday
• US personal consumption expenditures deflator, personal income, consumer confidence from the University of Michigan, Friday

Some of the main movements in the markets:

• S&P 500 futures were down 0.4% at 9:37 am in Tokyo. The S&P 500 rose 0.1%.
• Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.5% Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.6%
• Japan’s Topix fell 0.1%.
• The Kospi index in South Korea was little changed
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index is up 0.2%