It was a mixed finish in Asia today, after the U.S. Fed indicated a
December interest rate hike was still under consideration. Likewise, a stronger-than-forecast report on Japanese industrial production put a damper on expectations for the
Bank of Japan to open the throttle on its stimulus efforts following its Friday meeting. By the close, China's Shanghai Composite added 0.4%, Japan's Nikkei rose 0.2%, South Korea's Kospi backpedaled 0.4%, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng gave up 0.6%.
European markets are pointed south at midday, pressured by a generally gloomy round of corporate earnings. Deutsche Bank has tumbled more than 7% in Frankfurt following its quarterly results; elsewhere, oil majors Eni and Royal Dutch Shell are also in the red post-earnings. At last check, London's FTSE 100 is 1.1% lower, France's CAC 40 is off 0.8%, and the German DAX is down 0.5%.
