Cautious sentiment dominates Asian stocks

On the morning of December 8, Asian stock markets started the new trading week in a cautious mood, as investors awaited the most important policy decision of the month from the US Federal Reserve (Fed).

A screen displaying stock indexes in Tokyo, Japan. Photo: Kyodo/VNA

In Japan, the Tokyo Nikkei 225 index failed to maintain last week's rally, falling 162.95 points (0.32%) to 50,328.92 points. Although Wall Street's rally last weekend provided some psychological support, short-term profit-taking pressure and risk aversion ahead of the Fed meeting weighed on the market. Banking and retail stocks were under the strongest correction pressure, while real estate stocks went against the trend, benefiting from expectations of low interest rates.

Meanwhile, in China, the stock market fluctuated in opposite directions and traded in a narrow range. Specifically, the Shanghai Composite Index of the Shanghai market opened up 6.42 points (0.16%) to 3,909.23 points, while the Hang Seng Index of the Hong Kong market opened down 17.22 points (0.07%) to 26,067.86 points. According to observers, investors here are temporarily putting aside international macro factors to focus on the upcoming November trade data. This is considered an important "test" to assess the health of the world's second largest economy in the face of headwinds from trade tariffs.

In South Korea, the Seoul KOSPI index fell 1.54 points (0.04%) to 4,098.51 points. The South Korean market is being doubly affected: waiting for news from the US and waiting for the business results of US technology giants such as Oracle Corporation and Broadcom Corporation - factors that can reshape the trend of global technology stocks.

The rare bright spot in the Korean stock market belonged to LG Energy Solution with an impressive increase of nearly 4.6% thanks to positive news from the supply agreement with Mercedes-Benz. On the contrary, financial stocks such as KB Financial Group and Shinhan Financial Group became the main burden dragging the KOSPI index down.

According to experts, the core reason for the Asian market's hesitation lies in the Fed's meeting on December 9-10. Although the market is expecting an 85% chance that the Fed will cut interest rates by 0.25 percentage points, the consensus within the Fed is wavering. Mr. Michael Feroli, senior manager at investment bank JPMorgan, commented that the upcoming meeting could be one of the most divisive meetings since 2019.

Besides the Fed, this week is also a busy working week for central banks in Canada, Switzerland and Australia, with the general forecast of keeping interest rates unchanged, contributing to reinforcing the cautious trend globally.

In the domestic market, on the morning of December 8, the VN-Index increased by 14.25 points, or 0.82%, to 1,755.57 points. The HNX-Index decreased by 0.31 points, or 0.12%, to 260.34 points.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/thi-truong-tien-te/tam-ly-than-trong-chi-phoi-chung-khoan-chau-a-20251208112153799.htm