People watch the first sunrise of the new year from a footbridge overlooking the city skyline in Seoul on January 1, 2024.
Jung Yeon-je | Afp | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were set to open lower on Thursday, as the Japanese yen weakened to a near 38-year low late Wednesday, hitting160.82 against the U.S. dollar, according to FactSet data.
The yen last breached the 160 level against the dollar two months ago, prompting the Japanese government to prop it up in the country’s first currency intervention since 2022.
Japan’s year-on-year retail sales growth for May came in at 3%, higher than the market forecast of 2%, according to a Reuters poll of economists. This compares with a revised 2% growth in April.
Investors in Asia will also look toward China’s May industrial profit numbers which will be released on Thursday.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 futures pointed to a stronger open for the market, with the futures contract in Chicago at 39,405 and its counterpart in Osaka at 39,420 compared to the previous close of 39,667.07.
Futures for Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 stood at 7,689, lower than their last close of 7,783.
Hong Kong Hang Seng index futures were at 17,947, lower than the HSI’s last close of 18,089.93.