Investing.com-- Most Asian stocks fell on Wednesday, tracking losses in Wall Street as a post-election rally now appeared to be cooling, while anticipation of key U.S. inflation data also spurred risk aversion.
Regional markets remained under pressure after fresh fiscal measures from China largely underwhelmed, while uncertainty over what a Donald Trump presidency will entail for Sino-U.S. relations and global trade also weighed.
U.S. stock index futures fell in Asian trade after a negative session on Wall Street, as stock benchmarks fell from record highs after a strong run-up in the past week. Wall Street had rallied sharply in the wake of a Trump victory in the 2024 presidential election.
Some hawkish commentary from Federal Reserve officials also weighed on sentiment, as Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari warned that any increases in inflation could see the Fed keep rates steady in December.
Focus was now squarely on consumer price index data due later on Wednesday, which is expected to show U.S. inflation remained sticky in October.
Chinese stocks struggle as stimulus underwhelms
China’s Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 and Shanghai Composite indexes kept to a tight range on Wednesday, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index lost 0.6%.
All three indexes were nursing some losses in recent sessions after China’s plans for 10 trillion yuan ($1.4 trillion) in additional debt largely underwhelmed.
Investors were now holding out for more fiscal measures aimed at improving consumer spending and supporting the property market. Bloomberg reported the country was considering slashing homebuying taxes to support the property sector, although this did little to shore up local stocks.
Analysts said Beijing was likely seeking more cues on Trump’s policies towards the country, given that he has vowed to increase trade tariffs on Chinese imports.
China is now expected to outline more fiscal stimulus during two high-level political meetings in December.
Asia stocks fall amid CPI jitters
Broader Asian markets largely retreated on Wednesday, as anticipation of the U.S. CPI reading spurred risk aversion. Markets were also looking to an address by Fed Chair Jerome Powell later this week.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 1%, while the TOPIX lost 1.1%. Technology investing giant SoftBank Group Corp. (TYO:9984) shed 0.6% even as it clocked a much stronger-than-expected profit for the September quarter.
South Korea’s KOSPI was battered by extended losses in chipmaking stocks, with heavyweight Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (KS:005930) sliding to a four-year low on concerns over U.S. trade tariffs under Trump. Samsung has also largely lagged its rivals in tapping into increased memory chip demand from the artificial intelligence boom.
Australia’s ASX 200 slid 1% on losses in bank and mining stocks, while futures for India’s Nifty 50 index pointed to a weak open, after the index slid 1% in the prior session.
The Nifty was close to an over five-month low after Indian CPI data read much stronger than expected for October.