Asia markets fall as investors await key U.S., China economic data

Asia-Pacific stocks fell on Thursday as investors awaited U.S. personal consumption expenditures price index data for clues on the Federal Reserve’s interest rate path. The U.S. personal consumption expenditures price index, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, is due later in the day, while China’s manufacturing purchasing managers’ index reading is scheduled to be released Friday. Hong Kong announced it would do away with property curbs in an effort to buoy its real estate sector and forecast economic growth in a range of 2.5% to 3.5% for 2024. Walt Disney and Indian conglomerate Reliance will merge their Indian businesses. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.7% at open, while the Topix declined 0.3%. South Korea’s Kospi opened down 0.8%, while the small cap Kosdaq shed 0.6%. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.2%. U.S. stock markets slid Wednesday as investors awaited the Fed’s preferred inflation report. The S&P 500 fell 0.17%, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.55%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 23.39 points, or 0.06%, to clock a third straight day of losses. An outperforming fund manager that beat the S&P 500 for two years in a row has named cheap stocks that could “easily double.” Healthcare companies, including Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, have gained traction with investors. One lesser-known firm in the wider ecosystem stands out to the fund manager. Stocks in the U.S. closed lower on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed around 23 points, or 0.06%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.17% and 0.55%, respectively. BMO Capital Markets believes a market breather is normal and healthy during the second year of bull markets. The firm advised investors not to be too concerned if the market sees some weakness and instead use potentially weaker periods as an opportunity. Bitcoin reached a fresh high of $64,000 on Wednesday before turning lower. It was last trading at $61,097.00.