Asia-Pacific shares were mixed on Friday as investors look ahead to the U.S. jobs report for August, a key indicator before the Federal Reserve’s next interest rate decision later this month.
The Nikkei 225 dipped 10.63 points to end the week at 27,650.84.
The Japanese yen weakened past 140 against the U.S. dollar overnight, its softest since 1998. The currency hit 140.25 per dollar early in Asia.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index withered 357.08 points, or 1.8%, to 19,597.31.
Macao casino stocks listed in Hong Kong rose slightly after its gaming industry reported a 50.7% drop in gaming revenue compared to a year earlier, an improvement compared to the 95.3% drop reported for July.
Casino stocks were marginally up — MGM China traded 1.27% higher, Wynn Macau was up 1.07%, Sands China was up 0.47% and Galaxy Entertainment also gained 0.7%.
Hong Kong-listed Chinese electric vehicle stocks slipped in Asia’s morning trade after Li Auto and Xpeng said their deliveries fell in August.
Xpeng shares dropped more than 4.5% and Li Auto declined 1%. Both start-ups reported monthly and yearly declines in vehicle deliveries for August. Their U.S.-listed shares slumped overnight.
Nio shares in Hong Kong slipped 1.8% after its shares listed in the U.S. lost more than 5%.
South Korea’s consumer price index rose slower than expected — 5.7% in August from the same period a year ago, less than the 6.1% predicted by analysts in a Reuters poll.
In other markets
In Shanghai, the CSI 300 dropped 20.13 points, or 0.5%, to 4,023.61.
In Taiwan, the Taiex dumped 128.82 points, or 0.9%, to 14,673.04
In Korea, the Kospi index forfeited 6.2 points, or 0.3%, to 2,409.41
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index sagged 18.39 points, or 0.6%, to 3,205.69.
In Australia, the ASX 200 faded 16.89 points, or 0.3%, to 6,828.71.
In New Zealand, the NZX gained 18.42 points, or 0.2%, to 11,628.25
