TOKYO: Tokyo stocks eased Tuesday morning after five sessions of gains as investors adjusted positions ahead of a key policy meeting by the US central bank.
The US Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee is widely expected to hike its key interest rate at a two-day meeting set to begin later Tuesday.
“With a rate hike at this week’s FOMC fully priced and given the strong rally in the dollar, we are likely seeing some paring of positions heading into the rate decision,” said Khoon Goh, head of regional research at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group in Singapore.
“Market participants are also reassessing whether the Trump rally has gotten a bit ahead of itself,” he told Bloomberg News.
Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index, which closed Monday at its best level for a year, slipped 0.15 percent, or 29.46 points, to 19,125.57 by the break.
The broader Topix index of all first-section issues was down 0.08 percent, or 1.30 points, at 1,530.13.
Stocks have soared since last month’s election of Donald Trump as US president on a pro-growth platform of tax cuts and infrastructure investment, which boosted the dollar against other major currencies.
