(RTTNews) - Mixed trading was witnessed among the Asian markets open for trading on Friday, the last day of the trading week, as most of the traders turned cautious ahead of the GDP report for the second quarter and Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s speech at the Jackson Hole in the US. Weak closing on Wall Street in the previous session despite better than expected drop in weekly jobless claims also impacted market sentiment. Expectations of fresh measures to arrest the strengthening of the yen against the dollar and the euro lifted export-related stocks in Japan. The markets in India, Hong Kong and South Korea ended in negative territory, while the markets in Japan, Australia, China, Singapore and Taiwan ended in positive territory with modest gains.
In Japan, the benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed up 84.58 points, or 1.0%, to 8991.06, while the broader Topix index of all First Section issues rose 7.83 points, or 1.0%, to 820.
On the economic front, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications revealed that the unemployment rate in the country was a seasonally adjusted 5.2% in July, coming in at 3.31 million people. Analysts expected the unemployment rate at 5.3% for the month, same as in June. The report further noted that the the number of employed persons in July was 62.71 million, an increase of 10,000 from the previous year. The report further stated that the job-to-applicant ratio was 0.53 for July, in line with forecasts and rising slightly from 0.52 in the previous month.
In a separate report, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications revealed that consumer prices declined 1.1% year-on-year in July, falling for the 17th consecutive month. Analysts expected a 1% decline in consumer prices for the month. The report further noted that overall inflation also matched expectations at -0.9% after shedding 0.7% on year in the previous month.
In yet another report, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications revealed that the average of monthly consumption expenditures per household was up 1.1% on year in July, standing at 285,274 yen. The report further noted that the average monthly income per household stood at 562,094 yen, down 1% in real terms from the previous year. The average consumption expenditure was 319,659 yen per household, up 1.0% in real terms from the previous year.
Stocks of exporters led the gains on optimism about steps to tackle the firming yen. Sony Corp. climbed 2.65%, Sharp Corp. advanced 1.20%, Panasonic Corp. gained 1.32%, Canon Inc. added 0.86% and Advantest Corp. was up 1.72%. Among the electric machinery stocks, Fanuc Ltd rose 1.52%, Tokyo Electron climbed 2.62%, Kyocera Corp. added 0.14% and Mitsubishi Electric Corp. gained 1.43%.
Trading companies also ended in positive territory. Toyota Tsusho Corp. gained 1.75%, Sumitomo Corp. climbed 2.07%, Mitsubishi Corp. advanced 0.83%, Itochu Corp. increased by 2.20% and Mitsui & Co., was up 0.79%.
Real estate stocks also ended in positive territory. Sumitomo Realty & Development gained 1.82%, Mitsubishi Estate added 0.78%, Tokyu Land Corp. rose 1.51% and Heiwa Real Estate increased by 1.52%.
In Australia, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 Index advanced 14.10 points, or 0.32%, and closed at 4,370 points, while the All-Ordinaries Index ended at 4,404, representing a modest gain of 14.70 points, or 0.33%.
Mixed trading was witnessed among the mining and metal stocks. BHP Billiton declined 0.24%, Rio Tinto slipped 0.30%, Mincor Resources shed 0.85%, and Murchison Metals lost 1.02%. Minara Resources ended unchanged from previous close. However, Fortescue Metals ended in positive territory with a gain of 1.78%, Gindalbie Metals advanced 0.56%, Macarthur Coal advanced 0.54% and Oz Minerals was up 0.42%.
Oil related stocks also witnessed mixed trading. Woodside Petroleum slipped 0.85% and ROC Oil lost 1.41%. However, Santos gained 1.63%, Oil Search advanced 0.53% and Origin Energy ended in positive territory with a gain of 0.07%.
Gold related stocks ended in negative territory. Lihir Gold declined 2.01% and Newcrest Mining was down 1.97%.
Banking stocks also ended mixed. ANZ Bank slipped 0.13% and investment banker Macquarie Group was down 0.79%. However, Commonwealth Bank of Australia advanced 0.47%, National Australia Bank added 0.17% and Westpac Banking climbed 0.93%.
Weak global cues dragged the Indian market sharply lower on Friday ahead of a U.S. report on second-quarter GDP later in the day. Investors also eagerly awaited a speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke for more clarity on what measures the Fed might announce at the central bank’s annual conference to prevent deflation and a double-dip recession. After trading weak in a narrow range in the first half of the session, the 30-share Sensex lost further ground in the afternoon before ending down 228 points or 1.25% at 17,998, while the 50-share Nifty fell by 39 points or 1.26% to close at 5,409.
Among the other major markets open for trading, China’s Shanghai Composite Index ended in positive territory with a gain of 7.26 points, or 0.28% at 2,611, Singapore’s Strait Times Index advanced 12.87 points, or 0.44%, to 2939, and Taiwan’s Weighted Index rose 33.17 points, or 0.43%, to 7,723. However, Jakarta Composite Index in Indonesia bucked the trend and ended in negative territory with a loss of 40.40 points, or 1.28%, to close at 3,105.
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