HONG KONG, Oct 17 (APP/AFP): Most Asian markets swung lower Monday following healthy gains at the end of last week, as investors bet that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates before the end of the year. Shares had soared Friday after data showed the first rise in Chinese factory prices for more than four years, fuelling hopes the world’s number two economy is reaching the end of a years-long growth slowdown. Analysts said comments from Fed boss Janet Yellen Friday suggested the US central bank would raise borrowing costs but at a steady pace. Yellen said running a “high-pressure economy” could help it overcome the damage caused by the global financial crisis. “If nothing else, this is another lower-for-longer prescription. However, these comments do not preclude a 25-basis-point rate hike this year as another step in the normalisation process,” Thomas Simons, senior economist at Jefferies LLC in New York, wrote in a note to clients. Most experts predict a rise by December at the latest and are closely watching the release this week of US industrial output and inflation data.
Business News
Asia stocks fall as talk grows of Fed rate rise
