Asian equity markets fell on Thursday, tracking losses on Wall Street overnight after the US Federal Reserve delivered a widely expected 50 basis point rate hike but signaled that the fed funds rate could peak higher than anticipated next year. Investors also digested a raft of economic reports in Asia, including disappointing retail sales and industrial production data in China, a wider-than-expected trade deficit in Japan and a stronger-than-expected economic growth in New Zealand. Hong Kong stocks led the retreat with a nearly 2% drop, while Australian, Japanese and mainland China shares also declined.
