Asian stock markets are trading mostly lower on Thursday, following the negative cues overnight from Wall Street as the Fed's latest economic projections now point the first post-pandemic interest rate hike in 2023, well ahead of the projected timeframe. Seven officials expect a rate hike as early as 2022. The markets also remain tense amid the continuing high number of infections in most markets. Asian markets closed mostly lower on Wednesday.
The Australian stock market is slightly lower on Thursday, retreating from record all-time highs and snapping a winning streak of four previous sessions, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 staying just below the 7,400 level off all-time highs, as mining, technology and energy stocks fell, offsetting gains in the financial sector. The cues overnight from Wall Street were also negative after the US Fed tipped an earlier-than-expected rise in interest rates.
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Business News
May 15, 2026 15:25 ET Apart from the confirmation of Kevin Warsh as the next Fed chair, the main news on the economics front this week included key price data from the U.S. and the first quarter economic growth figures from major economies. Both consumer prices and producer costs have started to reflect the effect of supply shocks due to the Middle East conflict. In Europe, GDP data was in focus, while inflation data from China dominated the news flow in Asia.