Fed Minutes, Bank of Korea Decision, Sri Lanka
Bank of Korea raises interest rates by 25 basis points, meets expectations
The Bank of Korea raised its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.25%, a smaller increase than the previous move and broadly in line with expectations.
A Reuters poll of economists had expected the move amid signs of slowing domestic growth.
The nation’s inflation rate for October was 5.7%, according to the latest figures released earlier this month – much higher than the central bank’s target of 2%.
BOK Governor Rhee Chang-yong is due to hold a press conference later in the day on the monetary decision.
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CNBC Pro: Asset manager says investors need to buy this big stock right now
There is one stock with a large share capital that investors need to buy into right now, according to Rob Luna, investment strategist at asset manager Surevest.
He calls the CEO a “significant visionary”.
While Luna has singled out the one large-cap stock, he generally advised investors to reallocate to smaller names, naming two stocks that he called “best of breed.”
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
— Weizhen Tan
Stocks rise for a second day as Wall Street cheers the Fed signaling smaller rate hikes ahead
Stocks rose on Wednesday for a second straight day of gains as investors cheered minutes from the Federal Reserve that signaled a slower pace of rate hikes going forward.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 95.96 points, or 0.28%, to 34,194.06. The S&P 500 gained 0.59% to close at 4,027.26 and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.99% to 11,285.32.
Shares of Nordstrom fell 4.24% after the department store chain confirmed its forecast. However, Nordstrom beat profit and sales expectations in its latest results, according to consensus expectations at Refinitiv. Tesla rose 7.82% after Citi upgraded the shares to neutral from sell. Deere increased 5.03% on an earnings rate.
—Carmen Reinicke
CNBC Pro: By betting against a UK supermarket, short sellers expect almost 50% collapse in share prices
There is more pain to come for investors in a British supermarket company if the short seller’s prediction comes true.
The hedge fund currently has a bearish bet worth £32.6m and expects shares in the grocer to fall 44%.
The fund’s investment manager also believes the supermarket will raise new capital by diluting shareholders year after year to stay afloat in a challenging environment.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
– Ganesh Rao
Fed minutes show smaller interest rate hikes ahead, stocks rise
Shares rose on Wednesday afternoon following the release of minutes from the Federal Reserve’s November meeting. The report showed that the central bank sees progress in the fight to lower inflation and expects to slow down the pace of interest rate increases going forward.
“A significant majority of participants felt that a slowdown in the pace of increase would probably soon be appropriate,” the minutes said. “The uncertain lags and magnitudes associated with the effects of monetary policy actions on economic activity and inflation were among the reasons cited for why such an assessment was important.”
That means the Fed is likely to deliver a smaller rate hike in December and in the first months of 2023.
Markets cheered the news. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 130 points, or 0.38 percent. The S&P 500 rose 0.70% and the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.10%.
—Carmen Reinicke
