By Jake Maxwell Watts
Chinese shares outperformed the region, as a week-long spike in
interbank lending rates settled Friday, easing concerns about the
health of China's financial system.
The Shanghai Composite rose 1% to 2,093.4, while Hong Kong's
Hang Seng Index was up 0.2%, helped by gains in heavyweight
technology companies Tencent Holdings Ltd. (0700.HK) and China
Mobile Ltd. (CHL), which added 1.8% and 0.4% respectively.
The benchmark rate Chinese banks charge each other to borrow was
at 5.06%, down from 5.33% Thursday, providing relief to investors
looking for liquidity in the market at a time of year in which
companies and banks are trying to shore up their balance sheets for
year-end reports.
Elsewhere in the region, Japanese stocks broke a seven-session
rally and the yen (USDJPY) strengthened against the U.S. dollar
Friday, underperforming the rest of Asia after data releases failed
to inspire investors.
The Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.3% to 16,133.9, retreating from
a six-year high, and the yen strengthened 0.1% to change hands at
Yen104.86.
Early data from Japan showed consumer prices rising 1.2% on-year
in November, above the 1.1% increase expected by economists. That
marked the sixth straight month of price rises and brought the
country closer to the 2% inflation target pledged by the government
and the Bank of Japan. Strong inflation data should push up
expectations that the economy is back on track, reducing the chance
that the Bank of Japan would increase its stimulus measures to
weaken the yen further than it has already.
Other data showed that industrial production rose 0.1% on month
in November, below the 0.3% rise expected by economists. Retail
activity accelerated, with sales growing 4% from a year
earlier.
Despite the broader fall, many large-cap stocks still gained.
Telecommunications provider SoftBank Corp. (9984.TO) was 1.7%
higher, extending previous gains linked to reports that the company
was preparing to turn to the U.S. bond market to raise more than
Yen2 trillion ($19 billion) to acquire U.S. mobile carrier T-Mobile
US (TMUS) .
Among Japanese losers were Fast Retailing Co. (FRCOY), down
2.2%, and Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. (TKPHF), which lost 5% a day
after announcing that it would stop producing fasiglifam, a
diabetes drug, due to concerns about patients' liver safety.
Other stock indexes were mixed Friday. Korea's Kospi lost 0.2%
to 2,002.7, while New Zealand's benchmark was down 0.1%.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was trading up 0.2% on the strength
of stocks such as miner Rio Tinto Ltd. (RIO), which gained
1.1%.
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