Asian markets extend new year retreat after Fed minutes

Agency :
Asian markets continued their disappointing start to the year Thursday, tracking another loss on Wall Street after minutes from the Federal Reserve’s December meeting dampened hopes for an early interest rate cut.

And oil prices built on their previous day’s rally after deadly blasts in Iran that Tehran described as a “terrorist attack” fanned geopolitical fears and added to already high tensions in the Middle East.

The global rally that characterised the last months of 2023 has petered out at the start of the new year owing to worries the buying may have run a little ahead of itself, leading traders to take a breather.

The selling pressure was enhanced Wednesday when the Fed minutes showed officials expect to keep rates elevated for some time as they want to make sure they have inflation under control.