Japanese and Australian shares moved higher on Friday, as the U.S. dollar set a five-year high against the yen, capping a mixed week for regional markets.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index recovered 61.29 points, or 0.4%, to end the week at 15,403.11. That put the index up 0.7% for the week, making it the best performer in the region.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 27.84 points, or 0.1%, to 23,245.96
The U.S. Federal Reserve’s forthcoming policy meeting, scheduled to finish next Wednesday, remained the main event on the horizon.
After the U.S. posted a strong November labour report last week, expectations have increased for an imminent reduction of the central bank’s stimulus measures, which some think could start as early as next week.
As a result, the dollar strengthened 0.9% overnight against the yen and continued to push higher in Asian trading. The greenback went as high at ¥103.91, a fresh-five year.
Shares in China Cinda Asset Management Co. rose 4.4% on its second trading day after completing the largest initial public offering in Hong Kong in 2013. The company, which buys bad debt from banks and companies, raised $2.5 billion U.S., and jumped 26% on its debut on Thursday.
Down 1.7% for the week, Australia was one of the worst performing markets over the week, as a number of negative factors combined to weigh on the market, such as a flood of IPOs hitting the market before Christmas, a surprise profit warning from insurer QBE Insurance Group that damaged broader sentiment earlier in the week as well Thursday data that showed an increase in the unemployment rate.
Other markets to perform badly over the week included the Hang Seng Index, which fell 2.1%, hurt by falls in some of the large Chinese banks on further signs that Beijing will liberalize interest rates. The Kospi fell 0.9% in Seoul over the same period.
In other markets;
Shanghai’s CSI 300 index dipped 3.37 points, or 0.1%, to 2,406.64
Korea’s Kospi Index doffed 5.02 points, or 0.3%, to 1,962.91
Taiwan’s Taiex Index added 15.61 points, or 0.2%, to 8,376.94
The Singapore Straits Times Index took on 6.98 points, or 0.2%, to 3,066.02
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 gained 8.86 points, or 0.2%, to 4,717.06
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 restored 35.91 points, or 0.7%, to 5,098.43
