SYDNEY- Asian shares slid and the dollar held firm on Monday ahead of a week packed with no less than a dozen central bank meetings, highlighted by the Federal Reserve which is likely to take another step toward tapering.
Holidays in Japan, China and South Korea made for thin conditions, and politics added extra uncertainty with elections in Canada and Germany bookending the week.
The fate of Chinese property giant Evergrande, and its $300 billion in liabilities, is also in the balance with a bond interest payment due on Thursday.
Concerns about the health of China’s economy and Beijing’s crackdown on tech firms continues to haunt the region, with stocks in Hong Kong skidding more than 3 percent to their lowest in almost 11 months.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slid another 1.4 percent, after shedding 2.5 percent last week, with Australia down 1.5 percent.
Japan’s Nikkei was shut, but futures were 400 points below the Friday cash close. The market could do with consolidating after surging to 30-year highs on hopes a new Prime Minister will bring more stimulus and policy change.
Nasdaq futures eased 0.5 percent and S&P 500 futures fell 0.3 percent, with Wall Street ending last week on a soft note after disappointing US consumer confidence data.
The Fed is still expected to lay the groundwork for a tapering at its policy meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday, though the consensus is for an actual announcement to be delayed until the November or December meetings.
Central banks in the EU, Japan, UK, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Indonesia, the Philippines, Taiwan, Brazil, South Africa, Turkey and Hungary all have meetings this week.
The Norges Bank is expected to be the first in the G10 to raise interest rates. — Reuters
