Mainland Chinese stocks mostly deepened losses by the close, with other Asia Pacific markets also moving lower as U.S.-China tensions worsened on Friday.
Markets in Japan were shuttered for holiday. Even so, the Japanese yen traded at 106.25 per U.S. dollar, strengthening after wavering between 106 and 107 for most of this week.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index tumbled 557.67 points, or 2.2% to 24,705.33.
Tech stocks fell across the board, with Tencent tumbling 5.6% and Alibaba down 3.2%. Gaming stocks also saw steep losses.
Australian markets stumbled, with losses seen in the heavily weighted financials sector and oil stocks. The Australian dollar slipped below the 0.71 level, last changing hands around 0.7077.
CHINA
In Shanghai, the CSI 300 jettisoned 206.85 points, or 4.4%, to 4,505.59.
The Chinese yuan, a barometer of Sino-U.S. tensions, looks set for its worst week in two months. The offshore yuan was last at 7.0224 per U.S. dollar, and the onshore yuan was at 7.0166.
Tensions between U.S. and China took centre stage this week. China announced on Friday that it ordered the United States to shut its consulate in Chengdu, following the U.S. demanding the closure of the Chinese consulate in Houston.
Preceding that, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also slammed China in a speech on Thursday. He said Washington will no longer tolerate Beijing’s attempts to usurp global order.
In other markets
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index dropped 32.84 points, or 1.3% to 2,579.51
In Korea, the Kospi lost 15.75 points, or 0.7%, to 2,200.14
In Taiwan, the Taiex index subtracted 109 points, or 0.9%, to 12,304.04
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 sank 57.15 points, or 0.5%, to 11,636.26
In Australia, the ASX 200 shed 70.5 points, or 1.2%, to 6,024
