S&P 500 — US Large Cap Index
FTSE 100 — UK Blue Chips
Euro Stoxx 50 — Eurozone Leaders
DAX 40 — German Equities
CAC 40 — French Market Index
Nikkei 225 — Japan Benchmark
Hang Seng — Hong Kong Index
Shanghai Composite — China Mainland
ASX 200 — Australian Market
TSX Composite — Canada Index
Nifty 50 — India Large Cap
STI Index — Singapore Market
KOSPI — South Korea Index
Bovespa — Brazil Equities
JSE Top 40 — South Africa Index
IPC Index — Mexico MarketThe Japanese yen strengthened past 154 per dollar on Thursday, recovering from the previous session’s losses as steady wage growth reinforced expectations that the Bank of Japan will stay on its tightening path. Nominal wages rose 1.9% in September, up from a 1.5% gain in August, supported by stable base pay and a modest rise in overtime income. Still, wage growth lagged behind the 3.4% increase in consumer prices, resulting in a 1.4% drop in real wages and marking the ninth consecutive monthly decline. BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda said the 2026 wage outlook will be key in deciding when to resume tightening after the central bank left policy unchanged last week. Meanwhile, new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi reiterated that Japan has yet to see sustainable inflation driven by strong wage gains, signaling her administration’s cautious stance toward further rate hikes.
