Asian Equities Fall as BOJ Holds

Asian stocks fell, with the regional index retreating from a one-month high, while emerging-market currencies climbed as central banks from Japan, Europe and England decide monetary policy. Samsung (005930) Electronics Co. rose after product releases, and oil retreated.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slipped 0.2 percent by 12:21 p.m. in Tokyo, as five stocks fell for every three that advanced after the gauge’s highest close since July 30. Samsung rose for the first time in five days. Nasdaq 100 Index futures were little changed after Apple Inc. (AAPL) led a 0.6 percent drop in the U.S. technology gauge in New York. The South Korean won and Malaysia’s ringgit strengthened 0.2 percent against the dollar. Crude oil fell in New York and London after surging yesterday.

The Bank of Japan left its record stimulus unchanged, while the European Central Bank and Bank of England will announce their monetary-policy decisions later today. Samsung’s release of two new Galaxy Note phones helped fuel Apple’s steepest drop since January, amid concerns over account security. Ukraine and Russia made differing statements about a cease-fire in their conflict.

Bloomberg

Content is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc. or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. If you would like to reproduce or redistribute any of the content found on MarketPulse, an award winning forex, commodities and global indices analysis and news site service produced by OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc., please access the RSS feed or contact us at info@marketpulse.com. Visit https://www.marketpulse.com/ to find out more about the beat of the global markets. © 2023 OANDA Business Information & Services Inc.