Asia, Daily Dose

Chinese Stocks Drop as Policy Briefing Takes Centre Stage – Asia Market Wrap

Chinese stocks dipped, trailing Asian rivals, as investors became more cautious ahead of a major weekend briefing that could shed more information on Beijing’s fiscal stimulus.

The CSI 300 Index fell 1.9% before lunch break, undoing Thursday’s gains. Elsewhere in Asia, markets climbed in Japan and South Korea, avoiding losses on Wall Street as core inflation surged faster than expected, focussing attention on the Fed’s next move. Australian stocks were flat.

All eyes are on a Saturday briefing, when China’s finance minister is expected to announce additional stimulus measures to boost a weakening economy. Investors and economists expect Beijing to use up to 2 trillion Yuan ($283 billion) in new fiscal stimulus as it seeks to promote GDP and restore confidence.

US market futures also nudged up after the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 dipped 0.2% and 0.1%, respectively, on Thursday. Hong Kong’s markets are closed on Friday for a holiday.

In currency markets, the Yen was little moved at approximately 148 per Dollar after rising on Thursday, while the Dollar index remained flat. The South Korean Won remained strong versus the Dollar as the Bank of Korea dropped its key interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.25%, as predicted.