SINGAPORE — Japan stocks surged on return to trade, while shares in the Asia-Pacific were mostly lower on Friday following strong gains in the previous session as investors digested the U.S. inflation report.
The Nikkei 225 jumped 2.15%, while the Topix index rose 1.86%. Japanese markets were closed Thursday for a holiday.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.5%.
South Korea’s Kospi was flat, while the Kosdaq declined 0.37%.
Mainland China markets dipped. The Shanghai Composite shed 0.13% while the Shenzhen Component lost 0.25%.
China’s largest chipmaker Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation reported a net profit of $514 million in the second quarter of 2022, a 25% drop from the same period a year ago. Revenue grew 42% to $1.9 billion.
SMIC’s Hong Kong-listed shares dropped by 1.47%. The broader Hang Seng index was about flat.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.21%.
Thailand’s market is closed for a holiday Friday.
Overnight in the U.S., major indexes struggled for direction before closing mixed.
The S&P 500 was fractionally lower at 4,207.27, while the Nasdaq Composite shed 0.58% to 12,779.91. The Dow inched 27.16 points, or 0.08%, higher to 33,336.67. The three major averages opened the session higher but lost steam as the day progressed.
“Financial markets initially reacted positively to the Producer Price Index data that showed inflation in the U.S. is moderating, but gains then whittled away on concerns the market may have overreacted,” according to an ANZ Research note on Friday.
The PPI for July dropped 0.5% from June, compared with an expected 0.2% rise, according to a Dow Jones survey.
In corporate news, Credit Suisse has reportedly applied to begin formal legal proceedings in the English High Court against Japanese tech company SoftBank Group over a $440 million dispute.
But SoftBank shares rose 6.64% on Friday on news that it would add 4.6 trillion yen ($34.5 billion) to its pre-tax gains by reducing its stake in Chinese tech giant Alibaba. The company said the move would “further strengthen our defense against the severe market environment,” according to a press release.
