CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stocks followed Wall Street lower on Friday, as signs of surging U.S. inflation added to pressure on the Federal Reserve to hike rates aggressively.
Japanese markets were closed for National Foundation Day holiday. Chinese markets closed lower as Zhenro Properties shares fell heavily on redemption worries.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite index ended down 22.96 points, or 0.66 percent, at 3,462.95 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index finished marginally lower at 24,906.66.
Australian markets fell the most in two weeks as tech stocks followed their U.S. peers lower amid bets for more aggressive interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index dropped 71.20 points, or 0.98 percent, to 7,217.30, snapping a three-day winning streak and marking its worst session since Jan 27. The broader All Ordinaries index fell 79.70 points, or 1.05 percent, to finish at 7,515.80.
Xero lost 4.5 percent and WiseTech Global gave up 3.4 percent. Mining heavyweights BHP and Rio Tinto rose 1.2 percent and 2.9 percent, respectively on strong iron ore prices.
Banks ended flat to slightly higher after Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Governor Philip Lowe said it was plausible interest rates could go up some time this year and that there were risks to lifting rates too early. Insurance Australia Group surged 4.2 percent after its first-half profit topped estimates.
New Zealand stocks plunged after manufacturing data disappointed and another survey showed inflation expectations are gaining upside momentum across the time curve in the first quarter of 2022.
The benchmark NZX-50 index plummeted 239.27 points, or 1.93 percent, to 12,173.78, marking its sharpest fall since Jan 28, 2021. Pushpay Holdings, Vista Group and Pacific Edge fell 3-4 percent.
Seoul stocks ended notably lower after a sell-off on Wall Street overnight amid fears about aggressive rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. The Kospi average slipped 24.22 points, or 0.87 percent, at end at 2,747.71. LG Chem lost 4.2 percent and Naver declined 1.2 percent.
U.S. stocks pulled back sharply overnight after data showed consumer prices surged an annual 7.5 percent last month, marking the biggest annual increase in inflation in 40 years.
Hawkish comments from St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard also weighed on sentiment.
In an interview with Bloomberg News, Bullard said the data had made him 'dramatically' more hawkish and he would prefer a 50-bps rate hike in March and wants a full percentage point of interest rate hikes by July 1.
The Dow lost 1.5 percent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite tumbled 2.1 percent and the S&P 500 shed 1.8 percent.
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