A person stands in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan’s Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm Monday, March 18, 2024, in Tokyo. Asian stocks advanced Monday ahead of policy decisions this week by Japan’s central bank and the Federal Reserve. A person walks in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan’s Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm Monday, March 18, 2024, in Tokyo.
Elsewhere, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was unchanged at 7,670.60, while the Kospi in South Korea advanced 0.6%, to 2,681.26.US consumer sentiment ticks down slightly, but most expect inflation to ease furtherOn Friday, Wall Street closed out its second straight losing week, giving back some of the gains that helped push the stock market to an all-time high earlier in the week.
Communication services stocks also helped pull the market lower. Meta Platforms fell 1.6% and Google parent Alphabet fell 1.3%.