Asia-Pacific markets mixed ahead of U.S. inflation data

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. has secured a one-year license to keep ordering U.S. chipmaking equipment for its China expansion, Nikkei reported, citing sources.

The license from the U.S. government allows the company to continue shipping equipment to its plan in Nanjing, China, and serves as a temporary waiver from the latest sweeping rules announced by the U.S. The controls are aimed at preventing China from obtaining or manufacturing key chips and components for supercomputers.

TSMC declined to comment to Nikkei.

This comes after South Korea’s SK Hynix on Wednesday announced that it had received a one-year exemption from the U.S. government.

–Jihye Lee

Goldman Sachs raised its forecasts for electric car sales and said Tesla and another big automaker will benefit from the Inflation Reduction Act.

It comes at a time when the auto sector faces multiple headwinds in 2023, from rising interest rates to a fall in consumer demand.

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— Ganesh Rao

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company is expected to report a 34.6% rise in revenue to $20.03 billion in the third quarter of this year, compared with $14.88 billion in the same period last year, according to Refinitiv data.

The stock was trading 1.38% higher in Asia’s morning while the broader Taiex was about flat. Its U.S.-listed shares gained around 1% overnight.

Meanwhile, analysts expect Japan’s Fast Retailing to post a record annual profit of 291 billion yen ($1.98 billion), or 17% increase for the full fiscal year, estimates from Refinitive show.

Fast Retailing’s shares were last up 0.09%.

— Abigail Ng

These are tumultuous times for Meta, with investors fleeing this year as it struggles with headwinds.

The stock in late September plunged to trade at its lowest since January 2019 – and since then has dropped even more.

Do big investors consider the Facebook parent a buy, now that its shares are so cheap, or is it one to avoid?

CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia” spoke to Paul Meeks of Independent Solutions Wealth Management, and Jake Dollarhide of Longbow Asset Management, as they face off in making their bull-and-bear case for Meta.

Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Weizhen Tan

Hong Kong-listed shares of Beigene jumped 20% at the open after the company announced positive late-stage data from its blood cancer drug.

The biotechnology company said its treatment for adult patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia or small lymphocytic lymphoma is currently under review with the FDA, with a decision expected in January 2023.

–Jihye Lee

Shares of Toshiba jumped as high as 9.4% after a report said a consortium could acquire the company for about $19 billion.

Kyodo News reported that the Tokyo-based fund leading the group, Japan Industrial Partners, asked multiple companies, including Chubu Electric Power and Orix, to take part in the move, citing people familiar with the matter.

Toshiba could be delisted if the buyout is completed.

–Jihye Lee

This sector could be the next big technology to power electric vehicles, with Citi calling it one of the ten fastest growing industrial tech markets as it highlights opportunities in this space.

Morgan Stanley also flagged one stock that it says is a “hidden EV battery play.”

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— Weizhen Tan

All three major averages closed lower Wednesday after whipsawing between gains and losses throughout the day.

The S&P 500 shed 0.33%, falling to 3,577.03, its lowest close since November 2020 and its sixth consecutive daily loss.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 28.34 points, or 0.10%, to close at 29,210.85. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.09% to close at 10,417.10.

—Carmen Reinicke

The Federal Reserve’s September meeting minutes, released Wednesday, show that the central bank expects to continue increasing interest rates and hold them higher until inflation shows signs of abating.

The minutes reflect policymaker’s discussions ahead of the last 0.75 percentage point increase, the third consecutive hike of that size delivered this year.

The central bank has been surprised with the persistent pace of inflation, but remain optimistic that rate hikes will help bring price increases back in check.

—Carmen Reinicke, Jeff Cox