Asian Shares Ease As Early Fed Rate Cut Bets Fizzle

Asian stocks dipped on Wednesday as expectations of early interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve faded, dampening risk appetite, as reported by Ankur Banerjee and Anisha Sircar for Reuters.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan edged 0.09% lower on Wednesday.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan edged 0.09% lower on Wednesday. Japan's Nikkei slipped 0.21%, struggling to surpass the all-time high set in 1989 in recent days.

China stocks showed mixed performance in early trading following the significant reduction in the nation's benchmark mortgage rate as authorities aimed to support the struggling property market.

On Wednesday, the blue-chip CSI300 index declined by 0.6%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose by 1%.

Chinese stock exchanges announced on Tuesday that major quant fund Lingjun Investment had violated rules on orderly trading and would be barred from buying and selling for three days, as part of broader regulatory efforts to restore market confidence.

Despite the positive reaction to the mortgage rate cut, analysts emphasized the need for additional measures to improve market sentiment.

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