On Tuesday, markets in the Asia-Pacific region exhibited a predominantly downward trend, reflecting the declines observed. Investors appeared to exercise caution in anticipation of developments in the U.S. The Federal Reserve’s decision on December 10 in the United States. The central bank is anticipated to reduce rates by an additional 25 basis points at its concluding meeting of the year, resulting in a Federal Funds rate of 3.5%-3.75%. However, analysts indicated that the Fed will subsequently adopt a more data-driven approach. “I would not be surprised for Jerome Powell to be like, ‘We’ve cut, and now we’re in a place where we really need to watch the data,’ and he’ll stop just short of being hawkish, because we have seen the softness in the labor market,” stated Stephen Kolano.

In a volatile trading session, the index experienced an increase of 0.14%, closing at 50,655.1, whereas the broad-based Topix remained unchanged, finishing at 3,384.92. Tech gains mitigated the Nikkei’s losses, with companies such as Konica Minolta climbing 5.72% and semiconductor manufacturer Disco Corp increasing by 4.66%, positioning itself among the leading gainers on the index. South Korea’s Kospi index declined 0.27% to 4,143.55, while the small-cap Kosdaq concluded the day 0.38% higher at 931.35. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index declined 1.29% to 25,434.23, spearheading losses in Asia, while mainland China’s CSI 300 index decreased by 0.51% to close at 4,598.22. India’s Nifty 50 Index declined by 0.25%, whereas the BSE Sensex experienced a decrease of 0.27%.

Australia’s benchmark index decreased 0.45% to 8,585.9 following the central bank’s decision to maintain its policy rate at 3.6%, in line with expectations. “The recent data suggest the risks to inflation have tilted to the upside, but it will take a little longer to assess the persistence of inflationary pressures,” the Reserve Bank of Australia stated in a release after the rate decision. U.S. stock futures experienced a modest uptick on Monday night, supported by President Donald Trump’s endorsement of Nvidia. Sales of the H200 chip to China occur within a framework that allocates a substantial portion of the proceeds to the U.S. government.

In after-hours trading, Nvidia experienced a 2.2% increase following a post on Truth Social Monday evening, which indicated that the chipmaking giant may ship its H200 chips to “approved customers” in China and other locations, contingent upon a stipulation that a quarter of the sales would be remitted to the U.S. government. Overnight in the U.S., the S&P 500 declined by 0.35%, whereas the Nasdaq Composite decreased by 0.14%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined by 215.67 points, representing a decrease of 0.45%.