Asia-Pacific markets set to rise as investors await Bank of Japan decision

Asia-Pacific markets were acceptable to emergence Friday arsenic investors looked toward the Bank of Japan decision coming retired aboriginal successful the day.

The determination could spot rates raised to 0.75% — the highest since 1995 — with information from LSEG showing an 86.4% probability of a hike by the Bank of Japan.

A complaint hike volition apt fortify the yen against the greenback and incorporate inflation, which has tally supra the BOJ's people for 44 consecutive months.

Japan's consumer ostentation rate dropped to 2.9% successful November, authorities information showed Friday. Core inflation, which strips retired prices of caller food, remained unchanged from 3% successful October, and came successful enactment with Reuters-polled economists' mean estimate.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 roseate 0.56% successful aboriginal trade.

Japan's Nikkei 225 futures pointed to a stronger unfastened for the market, with the futures declaration successful Chicago astatine 49,560 and its counterpart successful Osaka astatine 49,420 compared to the erstwhile adjacent of 49,001.5.

Similarly, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index futures were astatine 25,675, higher than the HSI's past adjacent of 25,498.13.

Overnight successful the U.S., the S&P 500 snapped a four-day descent Thursday, boosted by lighter-than-expected ostentation information that brightened the outlook for little involvement rates successful 2026 and blowout guidance from chipmaker Micron Technology.

The wide marketplace scale jumped 0.79% to settee astatine 6,774.76, portion the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.38% to 23,006.36. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 65.88 points, oregon 0.14%, to extremity the time astatine 47,951.85.

— CNBC's Lim Hui Jie, Sean Conlon and Pia Singh contributed to this story.