Asian Shares End Lower Ahead Of Fed Meeting

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks fell on Tuesday despite stronger purchasing managers' index data from China. As recession worries mount, investors awaited a slew of central bank decisions this week for direction.

The U.S. Federal Reserve is due to announce its policy decision on Wednesday, with economists expecting a 25 basis-point lift amid signs of cooling inflation.

The accompanying statement and comments from Fed Chief Jerome Powell will be pored over for clarity on future rate hikes.

Investors are also pricing in a 50-bps rate hike from the Bank of England and European Central Bank this week.

Chinese shares ended lower even as data showed China's manufacturing and services expanded for the first time in four months in January. Profits of industrial profits declined in 2022, while overall profit structurer improved, separate data showed.

The International Monetary Fund said in its World Economic Update released today that Chinese economic growth will rebound to 5.2 percent this year as activity and mobility recover due to easing of COVID-19 restrictions.

China's Shanghai Composite index dropped 0.42 percent to 3,255.67 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index ended 1.03 percent lower at 21,842.33 ahead of earnings from tech heavyweights Apple, Amazon, and Google parent Alphabet this week.

Seoul stocks tumbled after Samsung Electronics reported its lowest quarterly profit in eight years in its fourth quarter, hit by weak demand. Samsung shares fell 3.6 percent while the Kospi average settled 1.04 percent lower at 2,425.08.

South Korea's industrial output fell 1.6 percent month-on-month in December, while retail sales rebounded in the month, separate reports showed earlier in the day.

Japanese stocks slipped into the red, dragged down by technology and financial stocks. The Nikkei average dipped 0.39 percent to close at 27,327.11 while the broader Topix index ended 0.36 percent lower at 1,975.27.

Advantest lost 2.3 percent, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group shed 2.8 percent and Tokyo Electron gave up 1.4 percent.

In economic releases, the unemployment rate in Japan came in at a seasonally adjusted 2.5 percent in December, matching expectation and unchanged from the November reading.

Industrial output dropped 0.1 percent month-on-month in December, beating expectations for a decline of 1.2 percent.

Australian markets ended slightly lower as data showed retail sales in the country declined for the first time in 2022 in December. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 finished marginally lower at 7,476.70 while the broader All Ordinaries index dropped 0.19 percent to 7,686.10.

Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index ended down 0.55 percent at 11,967.72. The benchmark index jumped 4.3 percent for the month, marking its best January since 2001.

U.S. stocks began the new week on a downbeat note Monday as caution crept in ahead of a slew of earnings from top tech firms and the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decision.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite lost 2 percent, while the Dow slipped 0.8 percent and the S&P 500 shed 1.3 percent.