Asia markets largely advanced on Friday, following a strong lead in from Wall Street and positive news on the U.S.-China trade front.
The Nikkei 225 traded up by 0.39 percent on Friday afternoon. Most major sectors in Japan rose during afternoon trade, with the shipping sector leading the way — moving up 2.18 percent.
In South Korea, the Kospi rose by 0.38 percent, with the tech industry in mixed territory and the auto sector down. Major auto manufacturer Kia Motors traded around 1 percent lower in afternoon trade.
Down Under, the ASX 200 edged around 0.08 percent higher during Friday afternoon trade as its major miners all declined. Fortescue Metals was about 1.88 percent down.
In the Greater China region, markets were mixed after beginning their trading day in positive territory.
The Hang Seng Index traded 0.6 percent up with the major financials advancing. Also in focus was Tencent, which had seen its shares slide earlier in the week following a string of negative news. The Chinese tech giant’s stock was up 3.25 percent in afternoon trade.
On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite edged downward by 0.39 percent after making gains of a similar magnitude earlier in the trading day. Fosun Pharmaceuticals was among those taking the largest hit, trading down by 7.4 percent.
The moves come after a Thursday rebound in U.S. markets, with a string of positive news ranging from strong corporate earnings to reports of a revival in U.S.-China trade talks all boosting investor sentiment.
White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow confirmed to CNBC’s “Squawk Box” earlier reports saying China and the U.S. will hold a fresh round of trade talks later in August, giving investors hope that the world’s two largest economies can solve an ongoing trade spat. According to Reuters, the planned talks were characterized as “lower level.”
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 396.32 points to close 1.58 percent higher at 25,558.73, posting its biggest jump since April 10. The Nasdaq Composite ended the day 0.42 percent higher to close at 7,806.52. The S&P 500 closed up by 0.79 percent to 2,840.69.
The Turkish lira, which has come under increased scrutiny in recent weeks after touching a record low on Monday, was slightly softer compared to levels last seen during Asian trade on Thursday afternoon. The currency traded at 5.8494 per U.S. dollar at 12:08 p.m. HK/SIN.
On Thursday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said more economic sanctions could be placed on Turkey if the country did not hand over detained American pastor Andrew Brunson, Reuters reported.
“The market has become much more volatile this year around these headlines, rumors even,” Jeffrey Kleintop, chief global investment strategist at Charles Schwab, said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
With data from this year suggesting that global economic growth might have peaked, Kleintop said, markets have put more emphasis on what he terms “marginal issues” such as the situation between the U.S. and Turkey which are likely to have limited financial impact.
The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of currencies, was at 96.551. Against the yen, the dollar traded at 110.87 as of 12:56 p.m. HK/SIN, with the safe haven Japanese currency near the 111 level.
Over in Shenzhen, the beleaguered Changsheng Biotechnology, which is part of an ongoing prosecution by the Chinese government for a scandal over the falsification of data in its vaccines, traded 5.02 percent lower.
Here’s a look at the data expected in the day ahead (all times in HK/SIN):
- 4:30 p.m.: Hong Kong July unemployment
- 5:00 p.m.: Euro-area – July inflation
— CNBC’s Fred Imbert contributed to this report.
