- Rookie McCarty captures first PGA Tour title in Black Desert Championship
- Australia all-rounder Green ruled out of India Test series
- Seeing double in Nigeria's 'twins capital of the world'
- UK FM to attend EU foreign affairs talks for first time in 2 years
- Carter, Billups among 13 new Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
- Ravens rip Commanders as Lions lose NFL sacks leader in win
- Hezbollah drone strike kills four, wounds dozens at Israeli base
- China says launches military drills around Taiwan
- Stewart leads Liberty past Lynx to level WNBA Finals
- England return to winning ways in Nations League, Austria thrash Norway
- UN chief says attacks on UNIFIL 'may constitute a war crime'
- Ravens outlast Commanders while Bucs batter Saints in NFL
- Dozens hurt in Israel as Hezbollah claims drone strike
- England deserve 'world class' coach: Carsley
- Burkina Faso win to become first qualifiers for 2025 AFCON
- AC Milan's Pulisic among five out for USA match in Mexico
- France's Amandine Henry retires from international football
- Centre-left set to win pro-Ukraine Lithuania's vote
- India's World Cup hopes in Pakistan hands after Australia defeat
- Zelensky says NKorea sending troops to Russian army
- England beat Finland to get back on track
- King and Lewis propel West Indies to T20 triumph over Sri Lanka
- Pre-Halloween 'Terrifier' lands atop North America box office
- 'I still plan to compete and play next season,' says Djokovic
- Harris, Trump seek advantage in knife-edge election battle
- Chepngetich shatters women's marathon world record in Chicago
- Kamindu and Asalanka power Sri Lanka to 179 against West Indies
- Chepngetich shatters women's marathon world record as Korir wins in Chicago
- Spain send injured Yamal home 'to prioritise player's health'
- In milestone, SpaceX 'catches' megarocket booster after test flight
- Iraq walks fine line with pro-Iran factions to avoid war
- Race four abandoned after New Zealand breeze into 3-0 lead in America's Cup
- West Indies win toss, put Sri Lanka in to bat in first T20
- Sudan rescuers say air strike killed 23 in Khartoum market
- Netanyahu tells UN to move Lebanon peacekeepers out of 'harm's way'
- Bangladeshi Hindus defy attack worries to celebrate festival
- Kiwis three up in America's Cup as Ineos pay for time penalty
- In a first, SpaceX 'catches' megarocket booster after test flight
- Dominant England crush Scotland at Women's T20 World Cup
- Dropped: The rise and fall of Pakistan batting maestro Babar Azam
- Israel fights Hezbollah on the ground, pounds Lebanon from the air
- Sabalenka outlasts local hero Zheng to win third Wuhan Open title
- Bangladeshi Hindus shrug off attack worries to celebrate festival
- Former Pakistan captain Azam dropped for second England Test
- 'Opportunist' Dupont dazzles on Toulouse return
- Australia replace injured Vlaeminck with Graham at Women's T20 World Cup
- Sinner wins Shanghai Masters to deny Djokovic 100th career title
- Ubisoft fears assassin's hit over falling sales
- Israel hits Lebanon from the air and fights Hezbollah on the ground
- China's Yin has 'goosebumps' as she romps to LPGA win in Shanghai
Stocks mostly up as Fed tries to temper rate cut expectations
Equities mostly rose Tuesday as traders looked past Federal Reserve officials' attempts to dampen expectations for several interest rate cuts next year, while the yen weakened after the Bank of Japan decided against moving away from its ultra-loose monetary policy.
Wall Street extended its seemingly relentless advance, fuelled by the US central bank's dovish pivot last week, and while investors in Asia were a little more reticent at first they turned more upbeat as the day progressed.
Since the Fed released its "dot plot" forecast for rates, officials have in recent days lined up to temper market predictions that it will slash borrowing costs by up to 1.5 percentage points through 2024.
In a Wall Street Journal interview published Monday, San Francisco Fed chief Mary Daly said she thought policy was in a "good place" to bring inflation down to the bank's two percent target.
Her Cleveland counterpart Loretta Mester told the Financial Times in another interview published Monday that traders had run ahead of themselves.
"They jumped to the end part (of the Fed's post-meeting statement), which is 'We're going to normalise quickly', and I don't see that," she said.
And Chicago chief Austan Goolsbee said he was confused by the strong market reaction.
The comments come after New York Fed chief John Williams told CNBC that "we aren't really talking about rate cuts", adding it was "just premature to be even thinking about" a March reduction, which some experts have suggested.
Stephen Innes at SPI Asset Management said: "It is essential to recognise that the Fed will likely demand sustained improvement in inflation metrics over several months before implementing any rate cuts.
"This consideration supports the notion that the actual pivot in rates might not occur as rapidly as currently anticipated by the market."
- No change by BoJ -
Hong Kong shed one percent, while Bangkok and Taipei also fell but Shanghai, Sydney, Singapore, Mumbai, Wellington, Manila and Jakarta edged up.
Tokyo jumped more than one percent and the yen reversed early gains against the dollar after the Bank of Japan opted to stand pat on monetary policy, as expected, and provided no guidance on its plans for the new year.
Speculation had been swirling in recent days that the BoJ was close to shifting away from its long-running, ultra-loose monetary policy as inflation picks up.
It kept its short-term interest rate at -0.1 percent and maintained its yield curve control, which keeps a tight rein on bond yields.
Before the decision, Belita Ong, of Dalton Investments, told Bloomberg News officials would most likely "take a slow course".
"It's taken all this time and this amount of depreciation and declining interest rates to get the economy going again and to get some inflation as opposed to disinflation back in the economy.
"So it's hard for me to believe that the BoJ would do something abrupt."
Economists have forecast the bank to make an announcement in April, Bloomberg reported.
Oil prices edged higher, a day after piling on more than one percent in reaction to a number of firms saying they would avoid the Red Sea following attacks on several cargo ships by Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels.
The rebels have escalated attacks on tankers, cargo ships and other vessels in the Red Sea, imperilling a transit route that carries up to 12 percent of global trade.
The group said Monday it had fired on two "Israeli-linked" vessels in a bid to pressure the country over its war in the Gaza Strip.
Five of the world's six largest shipping companies have announced they will not send ships through the Red Sea due to the threats.
In corporate news, Nippon Steel lost almost three percent in Tokyo after saying Monday it would buy US Steel for $14.1 billion, creating the world's second-largest steel company.
- Key figures around 0700 GMT -
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.4 percent at 33,219.39 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.0 percent at 16,461.31
Shanghai - Composite: UP percent at 2,932.39 (close)
Dollar/yen: UP at 143.30 yen from 142.73 yen on Monday
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0927 from $1.0919
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2661 from $1.2650
Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.32 pence from 86.31 pence
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.1 percent at $72.53 per barrel
Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.1 percent at $78.06 per barrel
New York - Dow: FLAT at 37,306.02 (close)
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.5 percent at 7,614.48 (close)
Y.Kobayashi--AMWN