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Fed holds rates; Powell says no rush to cut rates again

Australia bourse at record high; Japan's Nikkei ekes small gain

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Dollar supported by elevated US yields, policy outlook

uncertain

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Mixed 'Mag 7' earnings from Microsoft ( MSFT ), Meta, Tesla; Apple ( AAPL )

next

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US crude settled at lowest this year as Trump tariffs loom

By Kevin Buckland

TOKYO, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Asian share markets rose in

thin trading on Thursday as much of the region was on holiday

for the Lunar New Year, while the U.S. dollar held its ground

after the Federal Reserve signaled a pause in policy easing.

The exception was the yen, which strengthened against rivals

including the dollar with Japan's central bank seen as on track

to continue raising interest rates while others reduce them.

The strong yen weighed on Japanese shares, although the

Nikkei managed to close with small gains. Australia's stock

benchmark edged to a record high.

The U.S. central bank held rates steady overnight as widely

expected, with Fed Chair Jerome Powell saying there would be no

rush to cut them again.

President Donald Trump's policies remain a risk for the

Fed's policy outlook, and Saturday is likely to see new tariffs

slapped on Canada, Mexico and possibly China as well.

"Powell was unwilling to be drawn on the potential economic

impact and monetary policy response to tariffs, immigration and

regulatory change, but clearly the tails of the risk

distribution related to these factors are long and heavy," said

Elliot Clark, head of international economics at Westpac.

"Powell made clear in the press conference though that,

while strong, the economy is not overheated."

On Wall Street, after-the-bell earnings reports from members

of the Magnificent Seven megacap tech stocks were a mixed bag.

Microsoft ( MSFT ) beat quarterly revenue estimates, while

Tesla's fourth-quarter profit margin missed

expectations. Meta forecast first-quarter revenue below

market estimates. Apple ( AAPL ) reports results later Thursday.

The results did little to further the debate on Chinese

startup DeepSeek's potential threat to U.S. dominance in

artificial intelligence, and the big spending behind it -

questions that triggered a rout in global tech stocks on Monday.

U.S. stock indexes ended slightly lower on Wednesday, and

tech was the biggest drag on the S&P 500, as

the benchmark slipped 0.5%.

However, the mood looks to have improved with futures

pointing 0.3% higher as of 0656 GMT.

Australia's stock benchmark closed up 0.6%, while

Japan's Nikkei ended 0.3% higher after overcoming some

early weakness.

Most other major markets remained shut for holidays,

including Hong Kong and mainland China.

The U.S. currency was overall steady against major peers at

107.92 on the dollar index, after ending Wednesday flat.

The euro edged down 0.1% to $1.0414 ahead of the

European Central Bank's policy decision later in the day, with

traders all but certain of a quarter-point rate cut, and looking

for clues to justify the market view of up to three additional

reductions this year.

Sterling was flat at $1.2440.

The yen, however, strengthened about 0.5% to 154.43 per

dollar with Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Ryozo Himino

saying in a speech that the central bank will continue to raise

interest rates if the economy and prices move in line with its

forecasts.

Traders currently expect one more quarter-point increase

this year, potentially as soon as July.

Oil prices ticked higher, regaining some composure after

U.S. crude closed at the lowest level this year overnight, with

the near-term focus on Trump's possible tariffs on Canada and

Mexico, the two largest suppliers of crude to the United States.

U.S. crude futures rose 0.2% to $72.73 per barrel.

Brent crude futures added 0.1% to $76.64 a barrel.