MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.5%, though it was on course to post its first weekly decline in five, hit by sizable losses in Hong Kong and India.
· Japanese stocks ended higher on Friday and posted their third straight week of gains as consumer-related shares rose on speculation the Bank of Japan will follow other central banks and ease policy next month.
The Nikkei 225 index rose 0.16% to 22,079.09. Nikkei shares rose0.4% this week.
The BOJ kept policy steady on Thursday but signalled its readiness to expand stimulus as early as next month by issuing a stronger warning of overseas risks threatening the export-reliant economy.
The BOJ kept policy steady on Thursday but signalled its readiness to expand stimulus as early as next month by issuing a stronger warning of overseas risks threatening the export-reliant economy.
· China stocks firmed on Friday but posted modest weekly losses, after Beijing's cautious monetary easing this week to support an economy hit by a protracted trade dispute with the United States.
The blue-chip CSI300 index rose 0.3%, to 3,935.65, while the Shanghai Composite Index ended up 0.2% at 3,006.45.
China cut its new one-year benchmark lending rate for the second month in a row on Friday, a step by the central bank to try to wrestle down borrowing costs and support the economy as the Sino-U.S. trade war drags on.
But the move was far more cautious than easing by the U.S. Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank over the past week, suggesting Chinese policymakers remain reluctant to join a global stimulus wave due to worries about mounting debt.
· European stocks opened slightly lower Friday morning, amid caution about the possibility of the world’s two largest economies de-escalating their long-running trade war.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 was up around 0.1% shortly after the opening bell, but most sectors and major bourses traded in negative territory.
Reference: Reuters, CNBC
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