Asia markets poised for mixed open after U.S. inflation comes in hotter than expected

Asia-Pacific markets are set for a mixed open as inflation in the U.S. inflation rate in August came in hotter than expected, at 3.7% compared to economists’ expectations of 3.6% in a Dow Jones survey.

Month-on–month, the consumer price index rose 0.6% in August, in line with expectations. In July, the CPI rose 3.2% year-on-year and 0.2% month-on-month.

However, excluding volatile food and energy costs, the core CPI rose 4.3%, in line with estimates and down from 4.7% in July. Federal Reserve officials focus more on core as it provides a better indication of where inflation is heading over the long term.

In Australia, futures for the S&P/ASX 200 point to a lower open ahead of its August unemployment figures, at 7,153 compared to the last close of 7,153.9.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 is also set to fall, with the futures contract in Chicago at 32,800 and its counterpart in Osaka at 32,740 against the index’s last close of 32,706.52.

In contrast, futures for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index stood at 18,042 pointing to a stronger open compared to the HSI’s close of 18,009.22.

Overnight in the U.S., the three major indexes ended mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average seeing its second straight day of declines and falling 0.2%. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 was up 0.12% and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.29%.

— CNBC’s Sarah Min and Hakyung Kim contributed to this report