Market watch: Asian shares rebound on Fed rate cut hopes; oil slides ahead of Opec+ meet

Asian stocks gained on Thursday as dovish signals from US Federal Reserve officials and weak labour market data reinforced bets on interest rate cuts, even as oil prices extended losses ahead of a key Opec+ meeting.MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.5% after US equities closed with modest gains, Reuters reported. Japan’s Nikkei 225 opened 1.2% higher, while Australian shares advanced 0.7% following their steepest one-day drop since April. South Korean stocks also gained, though Chinese equities bucked the trend, with the Shanghai Composite down 0.4% on reports that regulators are preparing cooling measures for markets.Federal Reserve governor Christopher Waller said the central bank should begin lowering rates in September, with “multiple cuts in coming months,” according to Bloomberg. Traders are nearly fully pricing in a September reduction, CME FedWatch data showed, following a drop in US job openings to a 10-month low. Analysts at Capital.com noted the labour market slowdown “boosts the case for rate cuts.”US futures edged higher, with investors encouraged by comments that reinforced expectations of easier monetary policy. “Many people are looking for this weakness in September to be a buying opportunity,” said IG analyst Tony Sycamore, as quoted by Reuters.Meanwhile, oil prices weakened further, with Brent crude slipping 27 cents, or 0.40%, to $67.33 a barrel, and US West Texas Intermediate down 28 cents, or 0.44%, to $63.69, Reuters reported. The decline extended Wednesday’s 2% drop, driven by expectations that Opec+ will raise output at its meeting on Sunday.Sources cited by Reuters said that eight Opec+ members are considering further production increases in October, adding to the 2.5 million barrels per day already planned from April to September. US crude stockpile data due later Thursday will also provide direction, after the American Petroleum Institute estimated a build of 622,000 barrels last week against analyst expectations of a 2 million-barrel draw.