Beijing, June 17 (BNA): Most of the Asian stock markets fell on Friday after Wall Street fell on fears that higher interest rates would dampen global economic activity.
Tokyo, Seoul and Sydney fell. Shanghai and Hong Kong advanced. Oil prices fell but remained above $115 a barrel.
Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 fell 3.3% after the Bank of England followed the Federal Reserve’s lead in raising its key interest rate to cool price hikes. The central banks of Switzerland and Taiwan also raised interest rates.
Investors are concerned that moves to control inflation, which has reached its highest levels in four decades, could push the United States and other major economies into recession.
“Pain is inflicted almost everywhere and participation does not make it any better,” said Tan Boon Heng of Mizuho Bank in a report.
Markets have not calmed down on comments that President Joe Boden made to the Associated Press on Thursday that he sees reasons for optimism about the economy. Biden said a recession is “not inevitable.”
The Shanghai Composite advanced less than 0.1% to 3,287.88 while Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 fell 2.3% to 25822.56. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.6% to 20,983.41.
Seoul’s Kospi fell 1.2% to 2420.34 and Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 fell 2.1% to 6450.30.
New Zealand, Bangkok and Jakarta fell while Singapore prices rose. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 fell to 3666.77, its sixth decline in the past seven trading sessions. All stocks in the index fell except for 3%.
The main index gave up its 1.5% gain the day before after the Federal Reserve announced a 0.75 percentage point rate hike, three times its usual margin. Chairman Jerome Powell said on Wednesday that the Fed “is not trying to create a recession right now.”
The Bank of Japan concluded its two-day meeting on Friday without any major changes to its ultra-low interest rate policy, which was imposed years ago to try to stave off deflation or a price plunge. So far, it has avoided raising interest rates.
Thursday’s report showed that fewer American workers applied for unemployment benefits last week than the previous week. But more signs of trouble appeared.
In energy markets, benchmark US oil lost 57 cents to $117.02 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The contract rose $2.27 on Thursday to $117.58. Brent crude, the price basis for international trading, fell 47 cents to $119.34 a barrel in London. It gained $1.30 in the previous session to $119.81.
The dollar rose to 133.40 yen from 132.00 yen on Thursday. The euro fell to $1.0536 from $1.0573.
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