Asian shares recouped early losses to end mostly higher on Friday as investors awaited U.S. President Donald Trump's comments later today to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, along with preliminary data on U.S. fourth-quarter GDP.
Meanwhile, markets shrugged off data showing that China's industrial profit growth eased in December.
China's industrial profits continued to increase in December, though at a weaker pace than in the previous month, figures from the National Bureau of Statistics showed.
Industrial profits grew 10.8 percent year-over-year in December, slower than the 14.9 percent spike in November.
China's Shanghai Composite index rose 9.82 points or 0.28 percent to 3,558.13, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was up as much as 1.5 percent at 33,145 in late trade after Morgan Stanley boosted its stock target on a number of Chinese lenders.
Japanese shares ended a choppy session lower, dragged down by oil firms and financials. The Nikkei average dropped 37.61 points or 0.16 percent to
23,631.88 after fluctuating earlier in the day as investors digested consumer inflation data and the Bank of Japan's December monetary policy meeting minutes. The broader Topix index closed 0.27 percent lower at 1,879.39.
Overall nationwide consumer prices in Japan gained 1.0 percent year-on-year in December, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said. That was unchanged from the November reading.
Minutes from the Bank of Japan's December 20-21 meeting revealed that the monetary policy board is seeking to make policy adjustments as appropriate, taking account of developments in economic activity and prices as well as financial conditions, with a view to maintaining the momentum toward achieving the price stability target.
Inpex Corp and Japan Petroleum Exploration fell around 2 percent, while
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group declined 1.5 percent and Dai-ichi Life Holdings shed 1.6 percent.
Fujitsu shares advanced 1.2 percent after the company said it was in talks about selling its mobile phone unit to investment fund Polaris Capital Group.
South Korea's Kospi average rose 12.53 points or 0.49 percent to finish at 2,574.76, a fresh record high amid buying in large-cap shares by foreign and institutional investors.
New Zealand shares fell in quiet trade ahead of the upcoming earnings season and amid a holiday in Australia. The benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index dropped 58.36 points or 0.70 percent to 8,311.42, with A2 Milk and Ryman Healthcare both ending down over 2 percent.
Singapore's Straits Times index was marginally lower after preliminary figures showed the country's unemployment rate dropped slightly in the three months ended December, in line with expectations.
Markets in Australia and India were closed for the Australia Day and Republic Day holidays, respectively. Malaysia's KLSE Composite index was up 0.1 percent while the Taiwan Weighted eased 0.2 percent.
Overnight, U.S. stocks ended mixed as housing data disappointed and investors looked for hints about the Trump administration's stance on international trade.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained half a percent and the S&P 500 inched up 0.1 percent to close at fresh record highs while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite closed marginally lower.
by RTT Staff Writer
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