Asian Markets Trade Mostly Higher

(RTTNews) - Asian stock markets are trading mostly higher on Friday, despite the broadly negative from Wall Street overnight, as traders seemed cautious and await clarity on US President Donald Trump's trade policies and the outcome of Ukraine peace talks. They also react to a slew of economic data from the region, particularly from Japan and Australia. Asian markets ended mostly lower on Thursday.

Trump's harsh criticism of Ukrainian President Zelenskyy heightened tensions in the ongoing conflict. Trump called Zelensky a "dictator" after the latter said the U.S. president was "living in a disinformation space" governed by Moscow.

The Australian stock market is modestly lower on Friday, extending the losses in the previous four sessions, following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is falling to near the 8,300 level, with a mixed performance across most sectors. Mining stocks are the only bright spot as the underlying metal prices are higher.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 14.10 points or 0.17 percent to 8,308.70, after touching a high of 8,354.00 and a low of 8,301.10 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is down 13.80 points or 0.16 percent to 8,587.90. Australian stocks closed sharply lower on Thursday.

Among major miners, BHP Group is gaining more than 2 percent, Rio Tinto is advancing almost 3 percent, Fortescue Metals is adding more than 3 percent and Mineral Resources is surging almost 5 percent.

Oil stocks are mostly higher. Origin Energy is gaining more than 2 percent, while Woodside Energy and Beach energy are edging up 0.1 to 0.5 percent each. Santos is edging down 0.2 percent.

Among tech stocks, Xero is losing almost 2 percent and Zip is declining almost 3 percent, while Appen is gaining almost 3 percent. WiseTech Global is still in a trading halt amid a series of allegations levelled against its founder Richard White. Afterpay-owner Block is slipping more than 7 percent after reporting mixed performance for the full-year 2024.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank is declining more than 2 percent and National Australia Bank is edging down 0.2 percent, while ANZ Banking and Westpac are losing almost 1 percent each. Gold miners are mixed. Evolution Mining is losing almost 1 percent and Gold Road Resources is declining 2.5 percent, while Resolute Mining is advancing almost 5 percent and Northern Star Resources is gaining almost 1 percent. Newmont is flat.

In other news, shares in Domain Holdings are skyrocketing more than 39 percent after US real estate giant CoStar floated a $2.7 billion bid to acquire the real estate platform. Shares in Domain owner Nine Entertainment are also soaring almost 22 percent.

Shares in Guzman y Gomez are tumbling more than 7 percent after the food retailer reported half-year underlying earnings fell short of market consensus, but said it expects to exceed full-year profit forecasts in 2025 owing to strong first-half sales.

Shares in Spark New Zealand are tumbling more than 18 percent after the broadband provider lowered its 2025 earning guidance on poor performance from its enterprise and government division.

Shares in Jumbo Interactive are tumbling more than 9 percent after the lottery retailer posted a decline in earnings in the first half, citing a subdued environment for jackpots. It also cut its dividend by 11.1 percent.

Shares in Mayne Pharma are skyrocketing more than 33 percent after the pharmaceutical company revealed that it has accepted a $7.40 per share takeover offer from US-based Cosette Pharmaceuticals.

Shares in Telix Pharmaceuticals are jumping almost 14 percent after reporting upbeat full-year results.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.640 on Friday.

Recouping some of the losses in the previous two sessions, the Japanese market is slightly higher on Friday, despite the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is moving above the 38,700 level, with gains in some technology and financial stocks partially offset by weakness in index heavyweights and financial stocks.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 38,719.34, up 41.30 points or 0.11 percent, after hitting a low of 38,456.53 and a high of 38,523.07 earlier. Japanese shares ended sharply lower on Thursday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is edging down 0.4 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is down almost 1 percent. Among automakers, Toyota is edging down 0.3 percent, while Honda is edging up 0.2 percent.

In the tech space, Screen Holdings is gaining almost 3 percent and Tokyo Electron is edging up 0.5 percent, while Advantest is losing more than 1 percent.

In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial are edging down 0.5 percent each, while Mizuho Financial is declining almost 2 percent.

Among the major exporters, Panasonic and Canon are edging up 0.1 percent each, while Sony is gaining more than 2 percent. Mitsubishi Electric is edging down 0.4 percent.

Among other major losers, Furukawa Electric is losing almost 4 percent, while Suzuki Motor, Hoya and IHI are declining more than 3 percent each. Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Trend Micro and Hitachi are down almost 3 percent each.

Conversely, DeNA is surging almost 6 percent and Mercari is gaining more than 3 percent, while Shizuoka Financial and Ryohin Keikaku are adding almost 3 percent each.

In economic news, Japan's core consumer price index (CPI), excluding fresh food but including fuel costs, grew 3.2 percent year-on-year in January 2025. This marks an acceleration from the 3 percent increase in December and beats market expectations for a 3.1 percent. The January figure also represents the highest level since June 2023.

Meanwhile, Japan's annual inflation rate climbed to 4.0 percent in January 2025 from 3.6 percent in the prior month, marking the highest reading since January 2023.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the higher 149 yen-range on Friday.

Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong is up 2.7 percent, while China, Singapore, Malaysia and Taiwan are higher by between 0.1 and 0.7 percent each. New Zealand, South Korea and Indonesia are lower by between 0.1 and 0.7 percent each.

On Wall Street, stocks regained some ground over the course of the trading day on Thursday after moving sharply lower early in the session. The major averages climbed well off their early lows but remained firmly in negative territory.

The S&P 500 fell as much as 1.0 percent in early trading but ended the day more moderately lower, down 26.63 points or 0.4 percent at 19,962.36. The Nasdaq also slid 93.89 points or 0.5 percent to 19,962.36 after tumbling as much as 1.3 percent. The narrower Dow posted a more significant loss, slumping 450.94 points or 1.0 percent to 44,176.65.

Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index rose by 0.2 percent, the German DAX Index fell by 0.5 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index slid by 0.6 percent.

Crude oil prices settled higher on Thursday, as supply disruptions in Russia and drop in gasoline and distillate fuel stocks supported oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures closed higher by $32 or 0.44 percent at $72.57 a barrel.