Asian stocks fall ahead of Fed minutes

Asia Pacific stocks dipped on Wednesday as investors anticipated the latest minutes and other data from the U.S. Federal Reserve meeting. Investors are also considering the risk that central banks will tighten monetary policies to tame inflation.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 plunged 1.07% by 9:36 PM ET (2:36 AM GMT) as markets reopened after a holiday. Data released earlier in the day showed that the country’s manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for November went up to 54.2. The services PMI was also included in the data.

South Korea’s KOSPI edged down 0.37%, while the Australian ASX 200 crept down 0.09%.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index shed 0.20%, while China’s Shanghai Composite and Shenzhen Component declined by 0.19% and 0.10%, respectively.

The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield was around 1.65%, as the possibility of the central bank hastening its asset tapering programs soothed expectations of bond market inflation. However, expectations are still in a heightened state.