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Kazuo Ueda, governor of the Bank of Japan (BOJ), speaks during a news conference at the central bank's headquarters in Tokyo, Japan
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Asia-Pacific markets are set for a mixed open on Thursday as investors look to the Bank of Japan's rate decision, as well as key business activity figures from China.
Economists polled by Reuters expect the BOJ will hold rates at 0.25%, although the statement will be parsed for any clues on the timing of its next rate hike.
In China, the National Bureau of Statistics is set to release the country's official purchasing managers index numbers for September, with the manufacturing PMI forecast to come in at 49.9, a softer contraction than the 49.8 the month before.
Still, that would be the sixth straight month of contraction for the country's manufacturing sector.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 is set to open higher, with the futures contract in Chicago at 39,255 and its counterpart in Osaka at 39,227 against the index's last close of 39,277.39
In contrast, futures for Hong Kong's Hang Seng index stood at 20,511, pointing to a stronger open compared to the HSI's close of 20,380.64.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 started the day down marginally.
Overnight in the U.S., stocks slipped as investors digested a deluge of earnings reports and looked toward more results from megacap technology companies.
Alphabet exceeded analysts' expectations as the company saw strong quarterly revenue growth from its cloud business. Shares jumped almost 3%. However, Shares of chipmaker AMD slid more than 10% as its fourth-quarter revenue guidance failed to impress investors.
Tech titans Apple and Amazon are due Thursday, following results from Meta Platforms and Microsoft.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite declined 0.56% after earlier rising to a fresh record high. The S&P 500 slid 0.33%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.22%, to close at 42,141.54.
— CNBC's Hakyung Kim and Pia Singh contributed to this report.
CNBC Pro: As Diwali begins, these 4 Indian stocks are set to rise over 30%, analysts say
Interest in India has been growing steadily among investors.
As the Diwali festive season gets underway in the South Asian powerhouse, several sectors — and stocks — are expected to do well, analysts say.
Samvat 2081 — which starts on the day of Diwali on Oct. 31 — marks the start of the Hindu new year. It can lead to stock market moves, as some investors view it as a new beginning.
Indian markets made history in Samvat 2080 with the BSE Sensex surpassing 85,900 in September while the benchmark Nifty 50 index is crossed 26,250. Both indexes gained around 25% in the year, analysts from Kotak Securities flagged.
Analysts from Kotak and Mirae Asset revealed four buy-rated Indian stocks with over 30% potential upside they are betting on this Diwali.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
— Amala Balakrishner
BofA base case: Fed is on track to cut rates by 25 basis points
Bank of America thinks the Federal Reserve remains on track for a 25 basis point cut at its meeting next week.
"The October jobs report will be noisy," analyst Shruti Mishra said in a Wednesday note. "Even if there is an upside surprise, we do not think the Fed will have enough conviction keep rates unchanged, especially with the policy rate still close to 5%."
Mishra expects nonfarm payrolls to rise by 100,000 in October after coming in at 254,000 the previous month, viewing that forecast a "solid print."
About 96.7% of traders are forecasting a 25 basis point cut, per the CME Group FedWatch Tool.
— Pia Singh
Yen gains against the dollar
The Japanese yen rose 0.2% against the dollar on Wednesday as the greenback broadly weakened against major currencies.
The dollar was last trading at 153.03 yen. Month to date, the greenback has managed to strengthen 6.5% against the yen and remains 8.5% higher for the year.
JPY/USD on Wednesday
— Hakyung Kim
Outsized bets on Trump to win the election are a 'trap,' says Freedom Capital Markets strategist
While betting has largely skewed toward former President Donald Trump winning the election next week, polling is likely more accurate, according to Freedom Capital Markets chief global strategist Jay Woods.
"Betting on Trump — Too many people are falling into this trap," Woods said. "They're quoting betting sites and what the betting odds are on Trump winning but the polls are spot on. It is a dead heat right now."
"The Jets were favored to win too, and they lost. It's just where the money is going," Woods added.
— Brian Evans
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