Asian Stocks Open Higher after Fed’s Testimony on Not Raising Policy Rate Preemptively

Stocks in Asia traded mostly higher on Wednesday, following a gain in Wall Street overnight after the U.S. Fed reiterated on not raising policy rate preemptively, saying that the recent inflation surge is transitory.

 

As of 9:21 Local time in Thailand on June 23, 2021, Nikkei rose 0.04%, SSEC increased 0.07%, HSI gained 0.68%, Kospi advanced 0.21% while ASX 200 fell 0.50%.

 

Last night, Dow Jones closed at 33,945.58, increased 68.61 points or 0.20%. Meanwhile, S&P 500 rose 0.51% and Nasdag gained 0.79% to close at 14,253.27 points, a record high.

 

Yesterday, SET Index closed at 1,599.23 points, decreased 1.90 points or 0.12% with a trading value of 81.5 billion baht.

 

On Tuesday, the U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Tuesday that the central bank will not raise interest rates preemptively based on inflation fears, reiterating recent inflation surge is transitory.

 

“We will not raise interest rates preemptively because we think employment is too high, because we fear the possible onset of inflation. Instead, we will wait for actual evidence of actual inflation or other imbalances,” Powell told lawmakers at a hearing before the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis.

 

Powell said a substantial part of the recent rise in inflation comes from categories that are directly affected by the reopening of the economy, such as used cars and trucks in particular.