Asian shares mixed after Wall St dips on weak economic data
Asian shares are trading mixed following a decline on Wall Street after reports on the U.S. economy came in weaker than expected
TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were trading mixed Wednesday following a decline on Wall Street after reports on the U.S. economy came in weaker than expected.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 lost 1.7% in afternoon trading to 27,808.75. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 stood little changed, inching down less than 0.1% to 7,232.60. South Korea's Kospi added 0.5% to 2,493.83. Trading was closed in Hong Kong and Shanghai for the Qingming Festival, a holiday.
New Zealand's benchmark fell 0.3% after the central bank surprised economists by imposing an aggressive half-point rate rise to bring its policy interest rate to 5.25%. It was the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s 11th straight rate hike as it tries to cool inflation, which is running at 7.2%, far above the bank’s target level of around 2%.
Central banks have diverged somewhat in adjusting interest rates to reflect the latest trends in their economies. On Tuesday, Australia's central bank kept its rate at 3.6%, citing a need for time to assess where the economy is headed as inflation moderates.
