Asia-Pacific markets fell on Thursday following a volatile session on Wall Street, as concerns over persistent inflation led to expectations of prolonged higher interest rates, according to the Federal Reserve's December meeting minutes.
By 10:35 am AEDT (11:35 pm GMT) Australia's S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.7%, while South Korea's Kospi 200 and Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.1% and 0.5%, respectively.
Overnight, U.S. markets closed mixed. The S&P 500 gained 0.2%, finishing at 5,918.3, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.3% to 42,635.2. The Nasdaq Composite remained nearly unchanged, closing at 19,478.9.
Minutes from the Federal Reserve meeting revealed that most committee members view inflation risks as having increased, suggesting a slower pace of monetary easing in the future.
The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield briefly surpassed 4.7%, reflecting inflationary concerns. Across the globe, Japanese and U.K. 10-year yields surged to 14 and 17-year highs, respectively, while China's 10-year rates plumbed record lows of 1.64%.
Chinese markets closed mixed, with the Shanghai Composite remaining unchanged at 3,230.2, while the CSI 300 eased 0.2% to 3,789.2.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index declined 0.9% to 19,279.8. while India's BSE SENSEX down 0.1% to 78,148.5.
In Europe, stocks ended mostly lower. Germany's DAX fell 0.1% to 20,329.9, and France's CAC 40 dropped 0.5% to 7,452.4. Conversely, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index edged up 0.1% to 8,251.