Dollar stable, Asian stocks steady, as all eyes turn to Fed’s interest rate decision
Tokyo — Asian stocks steadied on Wednesday and the dollar held firm as investors awaited the Federal Reserve’s policy decision later in the day for more clues on its tightening plans. The Fed concludes a two-day meeting later on Wednesday, and is widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged. With a rate hike not in the picture this time, the focus will be on the Fed’s statement, with markets looking for signs of when the central bank will begin paring its massive bond holdings and next raise rates. A statement is expected at 6pm GMT. "The stock markets are generally of a view that the Fed is not in too much of a hurry to normalise monetary policy. So equities would be able to take this Fed meeting in stride if the Fed’s statement is in line with such views," said Masahiro Ichikawa, senior strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui Asset Management. Federal funds futures implied traders saw the chance of a Fed rate increase in September at about 8% with a 48% likelihood of a December increase...
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