<div id="readability-page-1"><div> By Ronnie Harui <pre></pre> Asian equities were mixed Wednesday afternoon as investors await the Federal Reserve's first policy decision under Chairman Kevin Warsh, who was nominated by President Trump in January. With the Fed widely anticipated to keep its benchmark rate unchanged at between 3.5% and 3.75%, financial markets are likely to focus on the Federal Open Market Committee's statement and the release of its quarterly Summary of Economic Projections, known as the &#34;dot plot.&#34; Last year, Warsh advocated for interest-rate cuts and was chosen to carry them out, but many Fed officials have since called for rate increases. Recent U.S. economic data suggest employment has picked back up and inflation is climbing. &#34;Removal of the implicit easing bias language and a hawkish migration to the dots are taken as a given,&#34; Westpac Strategy Group's Richard Franulovich said in commentary. While Warsh inherits an inflationary backdrop and a stabilizing labor market, his 'AI-is-disinflationary' credentials, lingering questions about Trump loyalty, and preference for a trimmed CPI target all raise questions about where he sits on the hawk-dove spectrum, the head of FX Strategy at Westpac said. &#34;The risk has to be that he delivers a more even-handed tone than positioning assumes,&#34; Franulovich added. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.6%, South Korea's Kospi added 0.9%, and Singapore's FTSE Straits Times Index was 1.5% higher. Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 0.4% and China's Shanghai Composite Index was down 0.2%. Crude oil futures were choppy, swinging between gains and losses, on possible position adjustments before this Friday, when the U.S. and Iran plan to sign their memorandum of understanding to end the conflict. Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures fell 0.7% to $75.49 per barrel after earlier rising as much as 1.0%, ICE data showed. Front-month Brent crude oil futures dropped 0.6% to $78.47 a barrel after earlier gaining as much as 0.8%. &#34;Oil resumed its slide as optimism around the MOU holds,&#34; InTouch Capital Markets' analysts' team said in commentary. &#34;Brent [is] holding below $79 [per barrel], on track for a fifth consecutive session lower,&#34; the team adds. <pre></pre> Write to Ronnie Harui at ronnie.harui@wsj.com <pre></pre> (END) Dow Jones Newswires June 17, 2026 01:21 ET (05:21 GMT)Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones &amp; Company, Inc.</div></div>

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Asian equities showed mixed performance as investors awaited the Federal Reserve's first policy decision under new Chairman Kevin Warsh. Markets anticipate unchanged interest rates, focusing instead on the FOMC statement and economic projections. While major indices in Japan, South Korea, and Singapore rose, Hong Kong and Shanghai declined. Meanwhile, crude oil prices dipped slightly amid optimism regarding a potential U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding.

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Asian Equities Mixed as Investors Await First Decision by Warsh-Led Fed — Update