NEW YORK: Wednesday saw a general increase in Asian stocks as a result of the Bank of Japan’s decision to hike its benchmark interest rate.
Later in the day, the Federal Reserve and Bank of England were expected to make policy decisions.
The move by the central bank to raise the benchmark rate from 0.1% to roughly 0.25% resulted in a 0.1% decline in the benchmark Nikkei 225 of Japan, to close at 38,478.92.
The BoJ’s rate hike was supposed to strengthen the yen, but because it was widely expected, the dollar actually fluctuated against the Japanese yen, occasionally rising beyond 153.00 yen. At 152.78 early on Wednesday afternoon, Japan time, it was essentially unchanged.
