Asia-Pacific markets fell on Thursday morning (19/12), tracking broad declines on Wall Street as the U.S. Federal Reserve cut its benchmark lending rate for a third straight meeting while signaling fewer rate cuts ahead.

Investors in Asia are looking ahead to the Bank of Japan's interest rate decision after a two-day policy meeting. The central bank is widely expected to keep its target interest rate unchanged at 0.25%.

The Japanese yen was slightly higher on Thursday morning at 154.57 against the U.S. dollar.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 1.4% while the Topix fell 1.27%. In South Korea, the Kospi index fell 1.84% and the Kosdaq index dropped 1.92%.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 traded 1.91% lower.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index futures were at 19,873, indicating a stronger open than the HSI's close of 19,864.55.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority on Thursday cut interest rates by 25 basis points in line with the Fed. The country's currency is closely pegged to the U.S. dollar.

Elsewhere, New Zealand's economy slipped into recession, falling 1% in the September quarter from the previous quarter, according to official statistics agency Stats NZ. A recession is defined as two consecutive quarters of decline.

Overnight in the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 1,123.03 points, or 2.58%, to 42,326.87, posting its first 10-day decline since 1974. The broad-based S&P 500 fell 2.95% to 5,872.16 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 3.56% to 19,392.69.

The Wall Street selloff came after the central bank cut its overnight lending rate by 25 basis points to a target range of 4.25% to 4.5%. While the cut was widely anticipated, the Fed indicated it would only cut rates by two in 2025, down from the four cuts previously forecast.

"We moved pretty quickly to get here, and I think going forward we're obviously moving slower," Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said at a post-meeting press conference.

Source: CNBC