Tokyo, Japan Skyline and Tokyo Tower
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Hong Kong's stock reached three years of Friday, leading the region's profits as investors squeezed inflation data from Japan against tariff threats from US President Donald Trump.
According to LSEG data, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index has risen 2.98% to its highest level since February 2022. The Hang Seng Tech index has added 4.97%. Hong Kong's stocks rose 12.9% in Alibaba after a significant increase in the company's profits in the December quarter, following growth in the cloud intelligence and e-commerce sectors. Mainland China's CSI 300 rose 1.12%.
Japan Nikkei 225 Added 0.25% and Topix traded flat. Japan's inflation rate rose to 4% in January, reaching its highest level since January 2023. Core inflation, excluding fresh food prices, rose to 3.2%, with Reuters forecasts shattering 3.1%.
South Korea Kospi It was traded flat while the small-cap Kosdaq added 0.76%.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 worn 0.32% and closed trading days at 8,296.2.
Investors will continue to look at the Japanese yen, which has been strengthened to match the two-month high of 150.52 on Thursday amid bets for more fee hikes by the Bank of Japan this year. The currency is currently trading at 150.22 against the greenback.
Three major averages fell in the US after the S&P 500 hit record highs for two consecutive days overnight. Investors have sold stocks from several popular companies following weak forecasts from retail giant Walmart, raising concerns about the economic outlook.
The Dow Jones industrial average finished at 450.94 points (1.01%) at 44,176.65. The S&P 500 dropped out of 0.43%, closed at 6,117.52, and the Nasdaq composite was immersed 0.47%, closed at 19,962.36.
—CNBC's Brian Evans and Sean Conlon contributed to this report.
