Asian Shares Mixed On Chinese Stimulus Disappointment

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks ended mixed on Friday after Chinese leaders pledged more stimulus measures during a two-day huddle of the Central Economic Work Conference in Beijing, a key economic meeting that sets policy priorities for the coming year.

Top officials vowed to deliver rate cuts and lower the reserve requirement for banks to maintain economic growth and ensure overall stability of employment and prices. However, the meeting lacked policy details of fiscal stimulus and monetary easing steps.

Investors also looked ahead to next week's Federal Reserve meeting, with economists expecting a 25-bps rate cut. The dollar index held steady in Asian trade while oil and gold were poised for weekly gains.

China's Shanghai Composite index fell 2.01 percent to 3,391.88 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index dropped 2.09 percent to 19,971.24 as policy updates from the high-profile economic policy meeting disappointed investors.

Japanese markets fell sharply after a business survey showed slight improvement in outlook for manufacturers, spurring debate over whether the Bank of Japan will raise its benchmark interest rate next week.

The Nikkei average fell 0.95 percent to 39,470.44 after logging a two-month closing high in the previous session. The broader Topix index settled 0.95 percent lower at 2,746.56.

Heavyweights Fast Retailing and Tokyo Electron lost 2-3 percent. Oji Holdings surged 11.2 percent on share buyback news.

Seoul stocks ended a choppy session higher ahead of a second impeachment motion against President Yoon Suk Yeol in parliament this weekend. The Kospi average rose half a percent to 2,494.46, extending gains for the fourth consecutive session.

Australian markets ended lower for a fourth day running, with miners leading losses.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 slid 0.41 percent to 8,296 as investors scaled back their February interest-rate cut bets. The broader All Ordinaries index fell 0.43 percent to 8,550.30.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index closed 0.48 percent higher at 12,754.26.

U.S. stocks ended lower overnight after the previous session's big gains. The Dow slid half a percent to close lower for the sixth consecutive session as data showed producer prices increased by the most in five months in November and weekly jobless claims unexpectedly rose last week.

The annual rate of producer price growth accelerated to 3.0 percent in November from an upwardly revised 2.6 percent in October, fueling concerns about how quickly the central bank will cut rates early next year.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite shed 0.7 percent and the S&P 500 gave up half a percent.