Mirroring the broadly positive cues from global markets overnight, Asian stock markets are trading mostly higher on Thursday, as optimism over the outlook for interest rates into the New Year generated renewed buying interest. However, traders seemed cautious in buying stocks following the recent strength in the markets and also appeared hesitant to cash in on the recent gains. Asian Markets closed mostly higher on Wednesday.
There is expectation the US Fed will cut interest rates in March 2024. Several other central banks are also widely expected to ease their policy tightening to spur growth.
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April 17, 2026 15:29 ET The ongoing conflict in the Middle East continues to raise concerns for policymakers who worry about the impact of the supply shock and high energy prices on the real economy. Producer price data and various survey results on the housing market were the main news from the U.S. this week. In Europe, industrial production data for the euro area gained attention. GDP figures out of China and the policy move by the Singapore central bank were in focus in Asia.