December's 0.3% reduction in consumer prices marks the third month of falling prices and ongoing demand weakness. Producer price index, which measures wholesaler prices, fell 2.7% for the sixteenth month.
The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers reported Thursday that 2023 auto exports rose 64% to 4.1 million passenger vehicles, contributing to that boom.
The Hong Kong Hang Seng index slipped 0.4% to 16,244.58 after climbing 0.4% in the morning. Shanghai Composite index fell 0.2% to 2,881.98.
Both the South Korean Kospi and Australian S&P/ASX 200 declined 0.1 percent to 2,537.17 and 7,501.40.The Indian Sensex rose 1.4% and the Bangkok SET 0.4%.
Stock values and investment prices rose as investors expected the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates significantly in 2024 to temper inflation. According to Thursday morning's inflation figures, U.S. consumers spent 3.4% more in December than a year earlier. Inflation rose from 3.1% in November and is on track with expectations.
More intriguing patterns may have been hidden beneath the surface. After removing volatile food and gasoline expenses, November-December prices rose as predicted by analysts.
Bond market treasury rates fell after inflation statistics.The 10-year Treasury yield was 3.96% on Friday. Although it was over 5% in October, it has subsequently decreased.In currency exchanges, the US dollar slipped from 145.28 to 144.83 yen. Euro fell from $1.0971 to $1.0967.Investors expected to know when the Fed will lower rates, but Thursday's inflation news shook Wall Street.
S&P 500 dropped 0.1 percent and Dow gained less than 0.1 percent. Nasdaq composite gained about 0.1 percent.