Declines in Asian financial stocks pressured some Asia-Pacific stock markets Thursday as investors reacted to the Federal Reserve’s latest rate increase.
Large Japanese banks Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group 8306, -2.46% and Mizuho 8411, -2.22% each fell about 2.5% following overnight declines in longer-dated U.S. Treasury yields. With pressure from the U.S. dollar’s drop Wednesday, the Nikkei Stock Average NIK, -0.28% was down 0.3% ahead of the close.
A 1.8% drop for insurer AIA Group 1299, +0.65% and 0.6% pullback for big bank HSBC Holdings HSBC, +1.76% helped keep Hong Kong’s Hang Seng stock benchmark right around Wednesday’s closing level in early-afternoon action.
Singapore’s stock benchmark STI, -0.80% fell 1%, dropping from fresh 2 1/2-year highs set Wednesday, as the country’s big banks saw their shares fall as much as 2%, retracing some of their recent strength.
But sizable gains were seen in South Korea, where the Kospi SEU, -0.45% rose 1.3% to extend the past week’s rebound. Electronics makers benefited as investors moved more money into small-cap names, though index heavyweight Samsung Electronics 005930, -0.51% bounced nearly 2%.
Wednesday’s Fed rate increase was expected, and no increase to 2018 inflation or rate-rise expectations was encouraging for Asia markets, said Hao Hong, head of research and strategy at Bank of Communications. “There isn’t any new hawkishness coming in,” he added.
The People’s Bank of China raised some short-term funding rates by 0.05 percentage point. That helped pressure stocks there, coming as economic data for November cooled slightly, with the Shanghai Composite SHCOMP, -0.32% recently down 0.6%.
Some analysts believe further central-bank activism is coming.
Sean Darby, chief global equity strategist at investment bank Jefferies, said improving economic data would likely force more tightening in the year ahead than is currently expected.
“The mix at the moment of a weak dollar and benign monetary-policy regime are pretty good for risk assets. Tax reform looks like it’ll get done,” he said. “The risks for 2018 may be overheating.”
Central banks in the Philippines and Indonesia will meet Thursday. And later, rate-setting committees at the European Central Bank and the Bank of England will gather.
Read: 3 things to watch for at Thursday’s ECB meeting
The Australian dollar AUDUSD, +0.2749% hit a one-month high against the U.S. dollar following strong jobs data. The S&P/ASX 200’s XJO, -0.17% early gains petered in afternoon trading as increases in commodity prices cooled. The index finished at session lows, down 0.2%.
But New Zealand’s stock benchmark NZ50GR, +0.47% finished 0.5% higher and posted a 45th record closing high for 2017. There were 50 last year.
The WSJ Dollar Index BUXX, +0.08% was essentially flat Thursday afternoon in Asia after snapping a seven-session winning streak on Wednesday. The U.S. dollar USDJPY, +0.25% was recently at ¥112.60, versus ¥113.30 when Tokyo stock trading ended Wednesday.
Oil futures rebounded after fresh overnight selling. February Brent LCOG8, +0.82% was recently up 0.6% at $62.79 a barrel.