The Reserve Bank of India is set to conclude its policy meeting, where the central bank is expected to trim the repo rate by 25 basis points to 6.25%.The Reserve Bank of India is set to conclude its policy meeting, where the central bank is expected to trim the repo rate by 25 basis points to 6.25%.
China has set a GDP target of around 5% for yet another year, amid analyst concerns of insufficient policy support to reach the goal.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were set to open mixedFriday as investors awaited India’s interest rate decision, with focus also on a key U.S. jobs report.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 traded 0.21% lower.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 futures pointed to a lower open for the market. The futures contract in Chicago is currently at 38,970 and its counterpart in Osaka last traded at 38,975 compared to the index’s previous close of 39,066.53.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures were at 20,907, slightly higher than the HSI’s last close of 20,891.62.
The Reserve Bank of India is set to conclude its policy meeting on Friday. The central bank is likely to trim the repo rate by 25 basis points to 6.25%.
Overnight in the U.S., the three major averages closed higher. The S&P 500 climbed for a third straight session on Thursday as investors weighed the latest batch of corporate earnings.
The broad market index added 0.36% to 6,083.57, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.51% to 19,791.99. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, however, lost 125.65 points, or 0.28%, and closed at 44,747.63.
Wall Street is now awaiting January’s jobs report, which is scheduled for release on Friday at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists polled by Dow Jones are forecasting nonfarm payrolls growth of 169,000 for the month, less than the 256,000 jobs added in December.
—CNBC’s Lisa Kailai Han and Sean Conlon contributed to this report.
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