Nikkei 225 index was 0.3% higher at 37,977.30, Hang Seng rose 0.2% to 17,033.91, S&P/ASX 200 soared 0.9% to 7,929.70, the Kospi rose 0.7% to 2,730.53, the SET gained 0.5%, while Sensex added 0.3%
Shares were mostly higher in Asia on Friday, with major markets apart from Shanghai and Taiwan logging modest gains.
U.S. futures and oil prices gained.
That followed a split Thursday on Wall Street, where general stocks gained while Big Tech stocks gave back more of their stellar gains.
Early Friday, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index was 0.3% higher at 37,977.30, after declining 3.3% the day before amid heavy sell-offs in many markets.
Tokyo’s core consumer price index (CPI) gained 2.2% in July, rising for the third consecutive month to its highest level in four months, adding to expectations that the Bank of Japan may raise its near-zero benchmark interest rate at a policy meeting next week.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.2% to 17,033.91, while the Shanghai Composite index slid 0.2% to 2,881.23.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 soared 0.9% to 7,929.70, while the Kospi in Seoul rose 0.7% to 2,730.53.
Taiwan’s Taiex tumbled 3.4% as it reopened after markets there were shut Thursday due to a typhoon. It was catching up with the retreat Wednesday, which was the S&P 500’s worst loss since 2022. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp. slumped 5.6%, tracking declines in Big Tech companies.
In Bangkok, the SET gained 0.5%, while India’s Sensex added 0.3%.
On Thursday, the S&P 500 declined 0.5% following its slide from the day before, ending at 5,399.22. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.2% to 39,935.07, while the Nasdaq composite dropped 0.9% to 17,181.72.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller stocks climbed 1.3%. It’s up 8.6% this month, versus a loss of 1.1% for the big stocks in the S&P 500.
