Stocks were mixed and bonds gained Thursday as traders weighed Federal Reserve minutes that struck a less hawkish note with downbeat remarks on China’s economy by Premier Li Keqiang.
Shares in Mainland China , Japan, Thailand and South Korea closed higher.
Treasury yields and the dollar dipped. Fed policy makers indicated their aggressive set of moves could leave them with flexibility to shift gears later if needed.
Investor’s worry shunned after Fed minutes that didn’t show an even more aggressive path being mapped to tackle elevated prices, though central banks remain steadfast in their resolve to douse inflation.
It’s time to buy the dip in stocks after a steep global selloff in equity markets, according to strategists at Citigroup Inc.
Meanwhile, Fidelity International Chief Executive Officer Anne Richards said the risk of a recession has increased and markets are likely to remain volatile, the latest dire warning on the outlook at the World Economic Forum.
“If inflation gets tame enough over summer, there may not be continued raising of rates,” Carol Pepper, Pepper International chief executive officer, said on Bloomberg TV, adding that investors should look to buy tech stocks after the selloff. “Stagflation, I just don’t think that’s going to happen anymore. I think we are going to be in a situation where inflation will start tapering down and then we will start going into a more normalized market.”
Russia’s central bank delivered its third interest-rate reduction in just over a month and said borrowing costs can fall further still, as it looks to stem a rally in the ruble and unwinds the financial defenses in place since the invasion of Ukraine.
The Bank of Korea raised its key interest rate on Thursday as newly installed Governor Rhee Chang-yong demonstrated his intention to tackle inflation at his first policy meeting since taking the helm. New Zealand’s central bank has also shown its commitment this week to combat surging prices.
Crude oil traded higher with WTI trading around $111 a barrel with the Brent trading around $114 a barrel.
