(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks were mixed as investors awaited clues about the Federal Reserve’s policy path in its final interest-rate decision of the year.
Chinese property stocks rallied on optimism over potential policy support, while stock benchmarks climbed in Taiwan and fell in South Korea. US equity futures were little changed. Silver extended a rally after rising to a record, while Australian bonds dropped for a second day following Tuesday’s hawkish central bank decision.
Traders are anticipating a third consecutive Fed rate cut Wednesday, while the focus will be on the central bank’s latest dot plot, economic projections and comments from Chair Jerome Powell. Volatility around the decision has been among the defining characteristics of equity trading in the past six weeks, superseding concern about a potential AI bubble and the impact of President Donald Trump’s trade policies.
“Asian equities are drifting in light red as investors brace for one of the most ‘known-yet-unknown’ final Fed packages of the year,” said Hebe Chen, an analyst at Vantage Markets in Melbourne. “With a 25 basis-point cut widely viewed as locked in, the real swing factor will be the Fed’s economic projections, unusually delivered without a full quarter of verified data — leaving a wide runway for interpretation and volatility.”
Chinese property stocks surged in Wednesday afternoon trading on expectations for policy stimulus from Beijing and hopes of progress in China Vanke Co.’s debt talks.
A Bloomberg Intelligence gauge of Chinese developer shares jumped more than 4% as trading resumed after the mid-day break. Shares of Vanke, which is at the center of investor scrutiny following bond payment delays, jumped as much as 19% in Hong Kong.
Chinese retail stocks also rose after Beijing called for prioritizing the industry as a key driver to boosting domestic demand. Retail should be prioritized as a key driver for building a robust domestic demand system and strengthening the domestic economic cycle, Vice Commerce Minister Sheng Qiuping said at a briefing.
Silver extended its rally after breaking above $60 an ounce for the first time on Tuesday, with momentum coming from supply tightness and bets on further monetary easing by the Fed. The white metal rose as much as 1.3% to a record $61.4797 an ounce on Wednesday.
“Silver has a big retail and speculative base,” said David Wilson, director of commodities strategy at BNP Paribas SA. “Once you have an upside momentum, it tends to bring in more money.”
Australia’s three-year note yield climbed as much as seven basis points to 4.21%, the highest since November 2024. The yield had jumped 10 basis points on Tuesday when central bank Governor Michele Bullock called an end to a truncated easing cycle as policymakers gauge whether a pickup in inflation requires an extended interest-rate pause or a switch to tightening.
Global bond yields have risen to highs last seen in 2009 ahead of a key Federal Reserve policy meeting, signaling concerns that interest-rate cutting cycles from the US to Australia may be ending soon.
US Treasuries were little changed after dropping Tuesday when data showed October job openings increased to the highest level in five months. The Fed’s two previous cuts this year were intended to address weakening employment conditions, including a rise in the unemployment rate to nearly 4.5%.
Kevin Hassett, the frontrunner in Trump’s search to replace Powell, said on Tuesday that he sees plenty of room to substantially lower rates, even more than a quarter-point cut.
Another Fed rate cut is seen as further eroding the options for investors who are looking for healthy income levels. In recent years, investors were paid handsomely to play it safe. Short-term US Treasuries offered yields above 5% — a rare chance to earn solid returns without locking up capital or chasing risk.
The Fed’s expected cut is a reminder that “today’s yields may not always be available,” said James Turner, co-head of global fixed income for EMEA at BlackRock in London. Pension and insurer clients are looking toward high yield, emerging-market debt, AAA rated collateralized loan obligations and securitization investments, to “enhance income and diversify,” he said
Oil held the biggest two-day drop in a month as concerns about global oversupply continued to weigh on sentiment.
Corporate News:
China Vanke Co. creditors are set to meet Wednesday as the distressed developer makes one more push to win support for a bond extension plan aimed at averting a default. SpaceX is moving ahead with plans for an initial public offering that would seek to raise significantly more than $30 billion, people familiar with the matter said, in a transaction that would make it the biggest listing of all time. Major investors in First Brands Group have offloaded stakes in the bankrupt auto supplier’s debt in recent days, causing the value of its most senior loan to collapse and prompting it to pull forward a lender call to calm nerves. Parkview Group Ltd. has secured a $940 million loan refinancing deal backed by a key Beijing asset, according to people familiar with the matter, ending a months-long saga that had weighed on the Hong Kong developer amid China’s prolonged property crisis. Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
S&P 500 futures were little changed as of 3:31 p.m. Tokyo time S&P/ASX 200 futures rose 0.1% Japan’s Topix rose 0.1% Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.1% The Shanghai Composite fell 0.1% Euro Stoxx 50 futures fell 0.2% Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro was little changed at $1.1633 The Japanese yen rose 0.1% to 156.70 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 7.0580 per dollar Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin was little changed at $92,623.68 Ether rose 0.6% to $3,323.17 Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.18% Japan’s 10-year yield was unchanged at 1.955% Australia’s 10-year yield advanced five basis points to 4.81% Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.3% to $58.41 a barrel Spot gold was little changed This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Michael G. Wilson.
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