Asia stocks edge higher.
Most Asian stocks drifted higher on Wednesday, aided by a mild recovery in the battered technology sector, although rising uncertainty over the U.S. economy limited overall gains.
Regional markets largely tracked a middling overnight performance on Wall Street, as mixed labor data and weak purchasing managers index readings kept investors on edge over the world’s largest economy.
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Asia tech recovers some ground
Tech-heavy Asian bourses advanced on Wednesday after a series of steep losses, amid some bargain buying in the sector.
South Korea’s KOSPI added 0.8%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 0.1%.
Tech benefited from some bargain buying after doubts over artificial intelligence sparked deep losses in the sector over the past week. South Korea was by far the worst-hit by this trade, while Hong Kong also nursed losses.
Bitcoin price today steady near $87k.
Bitcoin was largely steady near $87,000 on Wednesday after modest losses earlier in the week, as sustained outflows from U.S.-listed exchange-traded funds and uncertainty over the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate path kept investors cautious.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency was last trading little changed at $86,748.1 by 01:51 ET (06:51 GMT).
Bitcoin has remained in a narrow range, struggling to regain momentum as subdued risk appetite and a lack of fresh catalysts continued to weigh on prices, even as broader financial markets steadied.
Pressure on Bitcoin has been exacerbated by continued outflows from spot Bitcoin ETFs in the United States. Data showed that these funds recorded net redemptions in recent sessions, extending a trend of withdrawals that has raised concerns about waning institutional demand.
Dollar drifts near 2-1/2-month lows.
The U.S. dollar inched away from its lowest level since the start of October on Wednesday after data showed the labour market remained soft, leaving investors on edge about when the next rate cut from the Federal Reserve is likely to come.
The euro was 0.14% weaker at $1.173, but stayed close to the 12-week high it touched in the previous session ahead of the policy decision from the European Central Bank on Thursday, where the central bank is expected to hold rates steady.
The dollar index, which measures the U.S. currency against six rivals, rose 0.18% to 98.394, still not far from the lowest level since October 3 which it hit on Tuesday. The index is down about 9.5% this year, on track for its steepest annual decline since 2017.
While the U.S. economy added 64,000 jobs in November, surpassing an estimate from economists polled by Reuters, the unemployment rate was at 4.6% last month, although the 43-day government shutdown distorted the data.
Still, markets and analysts were unsure if the report had changed the policy outlook much and awaited the inflation report due on Thursday.
“The severe distortion in the jobs numbers makes them virtually unactionable for January, it would be extremely difficult for the Fed to calibrate policy on such a poor signal/noise ratio,” said Kieran Williams, head of Asia FX at InTouch Capital Markets.
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