A Chinese flag in Pudong’s Lujiazui Financial District in Shanghai, China, on Sept. 18, 2023.
Raul Ariano | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets opened lower Monday as investors assessed monetary policy decisions from Japan and China on Friday after U.S. Federal Reserve’s sharp rate cut sent markets higher last week.
Data last Friday showed China’s youth unemployment rate rose for a second straight month to its highest level this year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics, as the labor market cools down amid a weakening economy.
Despite growing calls for lower interest rates, the People’s Bank of China unexpectedly left its key benchmark rate on hold on Friday.
The Reserve Bank of Australia starts its two-day policy meeting on Monday, where central bankers will decide on the country’s monetary policy path on Tuesday.
Singapore is set to release its August consumer prices index, with core CPI estimated to have risen 2.6% year on year, according to a Reuters poll, compared to 2.5% in July. Overall year-on-year CPI is expected to have cooled to 2.15%, compared to 2.40% the previous month
Markets in Japan were closed Monday for a public holiday.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.43% on open.
In South Korea, the Kospi dipped 0.15% while the small-cap Kosdaq was little changed.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures were at 18,199, lower than the HSI’s last close of 18,258.57.
Futures for China CSI 300 stood at 3,183.8, lower than their last close of 3,201.05.
The three major U.S. indexes ended last week’s trading session in the green, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing at a record high, gaining 0.09% at 42,063.36. The S&P 500 pulled back 0.19%, ending at 5,702.55, while tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.36% to end at 17,948.32.
—CNBC’s Hakyung Kim and Brian Evans contributed to this report.