Japan -0.39%. Japan preliminary December Industrial Production -0.1% m/m (expected -1.2%). Japan December 2022 unemployment rate 2.5% (expected 2.5%). China -0.35%. China January official PMI: Manufacturing 50.1 (expected 49.8) Services 54.4 (expect 52.0). Hong Kong -1.45%. Australia -0.07%. Australia December retail sales -3.9% m/m (expected -0.3%). Australia December retail sales -3.9% m/m (expected -0.3%). India -0.07%. Overnight on Wall Street, major stock indexes took a turn back to the downside and are closing the day near session lows. The Dow Industrial Average is down -260.42 points or -0.77% at 33717.69; S&P index is down -52.68 points or -1.29% at 4017.89; and the NASDAQ index is down -227.89 points or -1.96% at 11393.82. South Korean December data – retail sales up m/m, industrial production down m/m. Investors are also looking ahead towards trade data from Thailand. The International Monetary Fund also revised upward its global growth projections for2023, but cautioned that higher interest rates and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine would likely still weigh on activity. Oil prices steadied in early Asian trade on Tuesday after falling by more than 2% in the previous session on the threat of further interest rate hikes and continued Russian crude flows. Brent crude futures gained 28 cents to $85.18 per barrel by 0155 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up 9 cents to $77.99. Gold prices edged up on Tuesday, en route to their third straight month of gains, as the dollar weakened, while market participants awaited the U.S. Federal Reserve policy decision later this week amid hopes of a less-aggressive rate hike. Spot gold rose 0.2% to $1,925.39 per ounce as of 0257 GMT and was headed for a monthly gain of more than 5%. U.S. gold futures were up 0.1% at $1,940.30. Elsewhere, spot silver rose 0.4% to $23.67 per ounce, platinum gained 0.1% at $1,009.76, and palladium inched up 0.4% to $1,635.48. But all three metals were headed for a monthly decline. U.S. futures lower. Dow Jones -0.07%; S&P 500 -0.05%; Nasdaq -0.21%.
