TOKYO: Asia markets were mixed on the final trading day of the week, following a nearly 1 percent or more decline in U.S. equities overnight, while the yen saw fresh strength against the dollar.
As of 10:18 a.m. HK/SIN, the yen traded at 107.32 against the dollar, compared with levels over 108 earlier in the session. That followed the pair’s fall of as much as nearly 3 percent Thursday afternoon local time from levels over 111..
Australia’s ASX 200 reversed early losses to trade up 0.28 percent, boosted by a 0.88 percent advance in the energy sub-index.
In South Korea, the Kospi was down 0.65 percent, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index dropped 1.24 percent. Chinese mainland markets were higher, with the Shanghai composite up 0.11 percent and the Shenzhen composite up 0.42 percent.
Major U.S. indexes closed down, with the Dow Jones industrial average lower by 1.17 percent, the Nasdaq composite down 1.19 percent and the S&P 500 off by 0.92 percent.
Japanese markets are closed on Friday for a public holiday. The Japanese benchmark index tumbled 3.61 percent in the previous session, after the Bank of Japan (BOJ) stood pat on monetary policy, disappointing a substantial section of the market betting on further stimulus.
“It was certainly surprising to me that they basically did nothing new, especially when there were market expectations for them to do something else on the equity purchases or other easing measures,” Eric Stein, co-director of global fixed income at Eaton Vance, told CNBC via email Friday.
Stein said for the past few weeks, BOJ governor Haruhiko Kuroda had “seemed frustrated with the yen strength,” and that his rhetoric had helped “move the currency from 108 to the 111s [level] and now its back to 108” against the dollar.
Kathy Lien, managing director of foreign exchange strategy for BK Asset Management said the main takeaway from the BOJ meeting is that “the Japanese feel no immediate pressure to use monetary policy or currency intervention to turn around the economy.”
In the currency market, the dollar index, which measures the dollar against a basket of currencies, was down 0.32 percent at 93.462.
“The U.S. dollar looks unlikely to break significantly lower,” said Angus Nicholson, a market analyst at IG. “The dollar index is currently resting on a very consistent resistance level around 93.8.”
Nicholson said this indicated it would not take all that much good economic news out of the U.S. to start seeing the dollar regain strength.
The Australian dollar traded at $0.7637 in morning trade, compared with Thursday’s finish at $0.7625.
In China, the yuan was flat against the dollar at 6.4726. Before market open, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) fixed the yuan mid-point at 6.4589, compared with Thursday’s fix at 6.4954. China’s central bank lets the yuan spot rate rise or fall a maximum of 2 percent against the dollar relative to the official fixing rate.
In company news, shares of Australian detention center operator Broadspectrum soared 32.37 percent after reports said its board has approved a takeover bid from Spanish group Ferrovial.
Oil prices retreated during Asian hours, with U.S crude futures down 0.39 percent to $45.85 a barrel after rising 1.54 percent overnight, while global benchmark Brent futures dropped 0.52 percent to $47.89.
Energy plays in the region were mixed, with shares of Santos advancing 1.17 percent and Woodside Petroleum higher by 1.37 percent, while Chinese mainland listed shares of PetroChina dropped 0.8 percent.
