Hong Kong (AP) Following Thursday’s Thanksgiving holiday closure of U.S. markets, Asian shares saw mixed results on Friday.
Oil and U.S. futures prices increased.
After the government announced that Tokyo’s inflation rate, which is seen as a gauge of national trends, increased from 1.8% last month to 2.6% in November, primarily as a result of a spike in the price of fresh food, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo declined 0.4% to 38,183.31. Core inflation, which does not include the cost of fresh food, increased slightly from 1.8% in October to 2.2% annually.
Expectations that the Bank of Japan will continue raising its benchmark lending rate are often strengthened by higher inflation. The Japanese yen, which was trading at 149.92 to the dollar early Friday, rises as a result. It was trading above 155 yen to the dollar a week ago.
The policy rate set by the central bank is now 0.25%. Only on the assumption that Japan had mostly met its 2% inflation target did it cease a protracted period of zero rates in March.
The central bank of South Korea lowered its benchmark interest rate on Thursday to alleviate pressure on the country’s faltering economy, causing the Kospi to drop 1.3% to 2,471.68. The S&P/ASX 200 in Australia dropped 0.2% to 8,428.20.
The marketplaces in China grew. The Shanghai Composite index jumped 1.6% to 3,348.20, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index increased 1.3% to 19,616.44. A significant economic planning meeting, typically held in December, is anticipated by investors.
On Friday, U.S. markets will reopen for a half-day.
After markets were shocked earlier in the week by President-elect Donald Trump’s revelation that he intends to impose quick, significant tariff hikes on imports from Canada, Mexico, and China, the holiday Thursday brought some reprieve in news about his post-election intentions.
The Dow dropped 0.3% and the S&P 500 dipped 0.4% on Wednesday. The technology stocks that make up a large portion of the Nasdaq composite saw a 0.6% decline.
In other transactions on Friday, Brent crude, the global benchmark, up 10 cents to $72.88 per barrel, while U.S. benchmark crude oil increased 46 cents to $69.18 per barrel.
The euro increased from $1.0557 to $1.0575.
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