FX.co ★ Asian Markets Trade Mostly Higher

Asian stock markets are showing mostly positive trends on Thursday, influenced by mixed signals from Wall Street the previous night. Investors have reacted to softer U.S. inflation data, which alleviated concerns about interest rate prospects. Additionally, the U.S. Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged, as anticipated, indicating only one expected rate cut this year. On Wednesday, Asian markets closed mostly lower.

The Federal Reserve noted modest progress toward its inflation goals in recent months. However, officials stress the need for more confidence in inflation moving reliably towards their target before considering rate reductions.

### Australian Market Performance

The Australian stock market is experiencing notable gains on Thursday, recovering some losses from the previous two sessions and following the mixed cues from Wall Street. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is trading well above the 7,700 mark, with significant contributions from gold miners and technology stocks.

- **S&P/ASX 200 Index**: Up by 33.10 points or 0.43%, reaching 7,748.60 after an earlier peak of 7,777.80.

- **All Ordinaries Index**: Increased by 37.70 points or 0.47%, standing at 8,000.80.

#### Sector Highlights:

- **Mining**: Rio Tinto and BHP Group are slightly down by 0.2-0.5%, while Mineral Resources have fallen nearly 1%. Fortescue Metals is up by 0.4%.

- **Oil**: Origin Energy rises nearly 2%, Beach Energy is up by 0.4%, Woodside Energy is marginally down by 0.1%, and Santos remains flat.

- **Technology**: Xero and WiseTech Global both advance by nearly 3%, with Appen up by more than 2%. Zip soars almost 7%, and Block, the Afterpay owner, gains almost 1%.

- **Banking**: Commonwealth Bank and National Australia Bank both increase by over 1%, while ANZ Banking and Westpac add almost 1% each.

- **Gold Miners**: Evolution Mining and Northern Star Resources rise by more than 1% each. Resolute Mining surges nearly 5%, Gold Road Resources advance almost 2%, and Newmont gains almost 1%.

In the currency market, the Australian dollar is trading at $0.665.

### Japanese Market Performance

The Japanese market is experiencing slight losses on Thursday, after initially opening in the green, influenced by mixed Wall Street signals. The Nikkei 225 manages to trade just above the 38,900 level. Weakness is noted in automakers, exporters, and financial stocks, though some index heavyweights are providing partial relief.

Investors remain cautious ahead of the Bank of Japan’s upcoming monetary policy decision, where interest rates are expected to remain unchanged.

- **Nikkei 225 Index**: Closed the morning session slightly down by 45.35 points or 0.12%, at 38,831.36, after hitting an earlier high of 39,252.44.

#### Sector Highlights:

- **Market Heavyweights**: SoftBank Group gains over 2%, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is up nearly 1%.

- **Automakers**: Toyota and Honda decline by almost 2% and 1% respectively.

- **Technology**: Advantest advances nearly 3%, while Tokyo Electron and Screen Holdings each drop about 1%.

- **Banking**: Sumitomo Mitsui Financial, Mizuho Financial, and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial all fall by more than 1%.

- **Exporters**: Canon declines nearly 2%, Mitsubishi Electric drops almost 3%, Panasonic is down by 1%, whereas Sony gains over 1%.

#### Notable Performers:

- **Gainers**: Renesas Electronics surges nearly 7%, while Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, CyberAgent, and Taiyo Yuden each gain over 3%. Disco, Daikin Industries, Recruit Holdings, and Murata Manufacturing add almost 3% each.

- **Losers**: Sumitomo Pharma drops nearly 4%, with Konica Minolta, Denka, Tokyo Electric Power, Chubu Electric Power, and Sumitomo Chemical each down more than 3%. T&D Holdings, Astellas Pharma, Concordia Financial, Mitsubishi, Eisai, Mitsubishi Chemical, and Kansai Electric Power decrease by nearly 3% each.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar trades in the higher 156 yen range.

### Other Asian Markets

- **Positive Performers**: South Korea and Taiwan rise by 1.5% and 1.1% respectively. New Zealand, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia also see gains of between 0.4% and 0.6%.

- **Negative Performer**: China bucks the trend, down by 0.2%.On Wall Street, stocks experienced some volatility following an initial rally due to consumer price inflation data being tamer than expected. However, markets managed to close mostly higher by the end of Wednesday's trading session, buoyed by the Federal Reserve's recent monetary policy announcement.

The Nasdaq surged by 264.89 points, or 1.5 percent, reaching a new record closing high of 17,608.44. Similarly, the S&P 500 gained 45.71 points, or 0.9 percent, also achieving a new record closing high at 5,421.03. In contrast, the narrower Dow Jones Industrial Average finished the day slightly down, falling by 35.21 points, or 0.1 percent, to close at 38,712.21.

Across the Atlantic, major European markets posted significant gains. The German DAX Index increased by 1.4 percent, the French CAC 40 Index climbed by 1.0 percent, and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index grew by 0.8 percent.

In the commodities market, crude oil prices rose on Wednesday, driven by expectations of increased demand and tighter supply conditions later in the year, coupled with a weaker dollar. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for July delivery advanced by $0.60, settling at $78.50 a barrel.