HONG KONG – A forecast-busting surge in US inflation sent Asian markets tumbling on Thursday, tracking a rout on Wall Street as investors fret that the Federal Reserve will be forced to hike interest rates earlier than expected to avoid prices running out of control.
Trading floors were already awash with red this week owing to growing fears that the blockbuster global economic recovery and vast stimulus measures will see a splurge in spending by pent-up, cashed-up shoppers that will strain supplies and push up costs.
And those concerns were given oxygen Wednesday by figures showing US consumer inflation spiked at 4.2 percent in April, far higher than estimates and th…
Keep on reading: Asian markets plunge as US inflation data fans rate hike fears