South Korea’s Kospi Index fell 1.2% on Friday as investors reduced exposure to the AI-heavy benchmark before Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s first Jackson Hole speech since taking the helm of the central bank. The address, scheduled for later in the day in Wyoming, comes roughly three weeks before the Fed’s next policy announcement and has become a key test of how Warsh will frame inflation and interest rates. The MSCI Asia Pacific gauge rose 0.4%, with seven of its 11 subgroups gaining. Japan’s Topix climbed 0.9%, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.8% to 66,682.88, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 advanced 0.4%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index added 0.1% to 25,579.86 and the Shanghai Composite edged up 0.2% to 3,966.11. Taiwanese equities gained 1.2% after Nvidia’s overnight surge. US stock futures were mixed, with Nasdaq 100 contracts down 0.1%, S&P 500 futures little changed and Dow futures up 0.15%. Nvidia’s second-quarter revenue reached $96.2 billion and earnings per share were $2.22, both above expectations, while the stock gained nearly 9% Thursday. Attention nevertheless shifted back to monetary policy, with the federal funds rate at 3.5% to 3.75%, a 35% implied chance of a rate increase at the Fed’s September 16 meeting and a hike fully priced by December. Treasury yields remained elevated, with the two-year yield at 4.23%, the 10-year yield around 4.67% and the 30-year yield near 5.20%. Analysts said Warsh may emphasize inflation control, while investors remain uncertain about his reaction function and reluctance to offer forward guidance. The speech could either stabilize long-term bonds and risk assets or extend the sell-off in Treasuries and pressure equity valuations if markets view the message as too hawkish or insufficiently clear.