*

Markets price more US rate cuts in 2025

*

OPEC+ expected to extend production cuts

*

Yen steadies as reports ruffle rate hike bets

By Tom Westbrook

SINGAPORE, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Asian stocks were mixed on

Thursday in the wake of record peaks on Wall Street as a softer

read on U.S. services data boosted investor confidence in the

Fed lowering interest rates.

The S&P 500, Nasdaq and Dow all

notched record highs overnight and bitcoin, at times a

barometer of the mood, was back within a whisker of $100,000.

Over the past week and a half markets have all but priced in

an extra U.S. rate cut for 2025 and the implied chance of a cut

in December has lifted from even to around 75%.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan

was slightly lower in early trade as selling in

Hong Kong offset gains in Australia and Japan. Japan's Nikkei

rose about 0.6% to hit a three-week high.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell around 0.8%.

The closely watched U.S. ISM survey showed services sector

activity slowed in November after posting big gains in recent

months. Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields fell three

basis points to 4.182%. They were steady in Asia trade.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell made balanced comments

at a New York Times event on Wednesday, describing the economy

as in good shape but not really pushing back on market pricing

for rate cuts.

Earlier this week Fed Governor Christopher Waller had said

he was leaning towards a cut later in December. European retail

sales figures and German factory orders are due later in the

day, though the week's focus is on U.S. employment data on

Friday where a strong reading could reverse bond-market moves.

"Generally data in the U.S. has continued to be pretty

resilient," said RBC Capital Markets' chief economist in Sydney,

Su-Lin Ong, noting measures such as the Atlanta Fed's GDPNow

estimate are for solid growth at 3.2% in the fourth quarter.

"We think the market has got too much priced in."

S&P 500 futures slipped a tad while European futures

fell 0.3%. German stocks are up 4% in a week

and at record-high levels.

BITCOIN NEARS $100,000

The dollar tracked U.S. yields lower in the foreign exchange

market, although not by much. The euro was pinned at

$1.0514 by political turmoil in France, where the government

lost a confidence vote for the first time since 1962.

The yen has retraced some recent gains and

expectations for a rate hike in December have unwound following

press reports pointing to policymakers' likely caution.

It was a tad firmer at 150.31 per dollar on Thursday. The

Australian dollar, at $0.6420, was nursing what was its

heaviest fall in a month on Wednesday following

weaker-than-expected growth data.

Bitcoin, which has surged since the election of Donald Trump

as the next U.S. president was making another run to the

eye-catching $100,000 mark as investors figure the incoming

administration will be crypto friendly.

It was buying $98,200 in the Asia morning.

"At the end of the day, it's just a number," said Geoff

Kendrick, global head of digital assets research at Standard

Chartered.

"But the reality is we've been able to get to this level

because the industry has become institutionalised this year

particularly - and that's mostly the ETF inflows," he said,

referring to exchange traded funds approved earlier this year.

Financial markets in South Korea were broadly steady after

the president's abortive attempt to impose martial law late on

Tuesday triggered volatility and a political crisis.

In commodity trade lingering expectations of Chinese

stimulus supported iron ore prices, while oil inched higher

ahead of an OPEC+ meeting later in the day.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and

its allies in OPEC+ are likely to extend their latest round of

oil production cuts sources told Reuters.

Brent crude futures rose 0.2% to $72.42 a barrel.

Gold prices steadied at $2,649 an ounce.

(Editing by Sam Holmes)