Producer prices in Japan increased by 3.8% yoy in December 2024, keeping the same pace as in the previous month and aligning with market consensus. It was the 46th straight month of producer inflation, remaining at its highest level since June 2023, as cost continued to grow for transport equipment (1.7% vs 1.6% in November), beverages & foods (1.9% vs 2.1%), iron & steel (-0.1% vs -0.1%), electrical machinery (4.7% vs 4.1%), production machinery (1.8% vs 1.4%), general-purpose machinery (4.3% vs 4.3%), metal products (3.8% vs 4.0%), other manufacturing (3.6% vs 3.8%), plastics (3.6%...
The Nikkei 225 index rose 0.8% to around 38,750, while the broader Topix index gained 0.6% to 2,706 on Thursday, recovering some losses from earlier in the week and tracking a strong performance on Wall Street. U.S. stocks surged overnight, boosted by a surprise drop in core inflation and solid bank earnings. However, investors remained cautious about Japanese equities after Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda indicated on Wednesday that the central bank would discuss the possibility of raising interest rates at its next policy meeting next week. Meanwhile, data showed that Japanese producer...
Asia-Pacific markets climbed Thursday, after U.S. markets soared on the back of an unexpected decline in core inflation numbers in December and strong bank earnings.Korea's central bank surprised market watchers by keeping benchmark rates unchanged at 3%. Economists polled by Reuters had expected the Bank of Korea to cut its policy rate by 25 basis points.South Korea's Kospi was up 1.16% while the small-cap Kosdaq index was up 1.65%, following the announcement.Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 was trading up 0.61% while the Topix gained 0.23%. Japan's annual producer price index climbed 3.8% in...