- Tens of thousands rally in Tbilisi against 'foreign influence' bill
- Bologna on brink of Champions League with Napoli win
- In Tel Aviv, Eurovision fans hope world shows Israel some love
- Ogier storms towards Rally of Portugal record
- Swedish police push back protesters outside Eurovision arena
- Ireland's Eurovision entry accuses Israeli broadcaster of rule break
- 'Many game-changers' as Kolkata book IPL play-off berth
- Rescue operations continue in flooded southern Brazil despite new rain
- Emotional Edwards in tears with Luton on brink of relegation
- Nadal eyes French Open despite Rome exit as Djokovic laughs off bottle drama
- Kolkata down Mumbai to confirm IPL play-off berth
- Russia claims gains in Ukraine's Kharkiv region
- Mainz crush Dortmund to edge to safety, Cologne stun Union Berlin
- Swaggering champions Madrid rout relegated Granada
- 'Miracle' survivor found 5 days after S.Africa building collapse
- Thousands rally in Tbilisi against 'foreign influence' bill
- Kane to miss Bayern's last home game with back injury
- Hundreds protest outside German Tesla factory
- 'Fine' Djokovic dons cycling crash helmet after Rome bottle drama
- Al Hilal keep Ronaldo trophy-less in rich Saudi league
- Thousands rally in Tbilisi against 'foreign influence' bill: AFP
- 'They drowned together': Lives swept away by Afghanistan floods
- Ireland's Eurovision entry shares cryptic post ahead of final
- Burnley relegated from Premier League after loss at Spurs
- In Nigeria, Prince Harry promotes Invictus Games for veterans
- Man City close in on Premier League title, Burnley relegated
- Cologne great escape still on after stunning comeback
- Brazil's catastrophic weather spawns spate of conspiracy theories
- Man City have title 'destiny' in our hands: Guardiola
- Pogacar wins again on Giro d'Italia mountain
- Madrid eagerly awaits Mbappe after PSG exit confirmed
- Russia claims gains in ground offensive in Ukraine's Kharkiv region
- 'England great' Anderson will make last Test appearance in West Indies clash
- Martin wins French MotoGP sprint to pad championship lead
- Nadal eyes French Open bid despite early Rome exit
- Gvardiol double sinks Fulham as Man City go top of Premier League
- Kewell wary after Yokohama edge Asian Champions League final opener
- Nadal falls to Hurkacz in Rome Open second round
- More than 300 dead in Afghanistan flash floods: WFP
- In Nigeria for Invictus, Prince Harry plays volleyball with veterans
- Anderson will make last England Test appearance in West Indies clash
- Departing Mbappe 'a PSG legend', says Luis Enrique
- Iraq hopes oil reserves will exceed 160 bn barrels: minister
- Swiatek battles into Rome last 16, Djokovic 'fine' after bottle strike drama
- Russia claims more advances after Ukraine ground offensive
- Israel strikes Gaza as more Rafah evacuations ordered
- Swedish police probe 'intimidation' at Eurovision
- Djokovic 'fine' after bottle strike drama at Rome Open
- Malaysia football kicks off under heightened security after attacks
- Djokovic 'fine' after being hit on head with water bottle at Rome Open
Asian markets mixed as global rally stalls, eyes on yen
Asian equities were mixed Thursday as investors turned cautious after the past three days' sizeable gains, with Meta's warning that it will spend far more than expected this year fuelling worries that the latest tech-led rally may have gone too far.
Traders also kept an eye on Japan as the yen wallowed at a fresh three-decade low above 155 per dollar, a level many observers saw as likely to see authorities intervene in currency markets.
They were also preparing for the release of key US inflation data Friday that could have a bearing on the Federal Reserve's plans for cutting interest rates ahead of its meeting next week.
Stocks have enjoyed broad gains this week on optimism that earnings from some of the world's biggest companies -- particularly in the tech sector -- would show that profits remained strong even amid stubbornly high inflation and elevated interest rates.
The latest advances saw London chalk up a new record, joining Frankfurt, Paris, Tokyo and Wall Street this year.
However, they lost a little momentum in New York on Wednesday -- with the Dow down, S&P flat and Nasdaq slightly higher.
And Asia followed suit, with analysts suggesting Facebook parent Meta could be a key reason after it said expenditures would exceed expectations this year as it projected second-quarter sales that were below analyst expectations and increased its spending estimates.
Because of investments in artificial intelligence, it saw 2024 capital expenditure of $35-$40 billion, up from a prior range of $30-$37 billion. Its shares tanked more than 10 percent in after-hours US trading.
Tokyo, Singapore, Seoul, Taipei and Jakarta all fell, though Hong Kong resumed its latest rally, while Shanghai and Manila were also up.
"Meta’s resources are vast, but not infinite," Sophie Lund-Yates, at Hargreaves Lansdown, said.
"The language around spending plans has become bolder once more, and this could be what’s spooking markets."
Tech titans Microsoft and Alphabet are due to report later in the day.
Then focus turns to the macro-economy, with the release Friday of the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) index -- the Fed's favoured gauge of inflation.
There are fears that inflation could spike again after three straight months of above-forecast consumer price index figures that -- along with warnings from monetary policymakers -- dented expectations for how many cuts the bank will make this year.
The PCE reading comes ahead of the Fed's meeting next week.
"Since the start of this year, we have held the view that the (policy board) will embark on a series of gradual, 25 basis-point-per-quarter rate cuts, commencing in June" and going through to the third quarter of 2025, said HSBC's Ryan Wang.
"While we retain this view, the risks are clearly skewed to a later start for rate cuts given Powell's assessment of recent economic activity and core inflation data," he said, referring to the US Fed chief.
In Japan, Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said he was keeping a close eye on currency markets after the yen fell to a 34-year low of 155.45 to the dollar, fuelling speculation of an intervention to support the currency.
Officials have in recent weeks said they are prepared to step in owing to excessive moves they blamed on speculators.
However, commentators warn that an intervention will only be a temporary solution owing to the fact that US interest rates remain at two-decade highs and the Bank of Japan remains wedded to its loose monetary policy.
The bank holds its next meeting Friday.
- Key figures around 0230 GMT -
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.7 percent at 37,818.11 (break)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.9 percent at 17,361.42
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 3,049.85
Dollar/yen: UP at 155.44 yen from 155.31 yen on Wednesday
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0706 from $1.0701
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2465 from $1.2461
Euro/pound: UP at 85.88 pence from 85.85 pence
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.1 percent at $82.85 per barrel
Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.1 percent at $88.09 per barrel
New York - Dow: DOWN 0.1 percent at 38,460.92 (close)
London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.1 percent at 8,040.38 (close)
D.Schneider--BTB