Asian markets closed lower on Friday, July 25, the final trading session of the week. Japanese indices retreated after gains of more than 4% during the week following the Washington-Tokyo trade agreement.
In economic data released this morning, figures from Japan showed that core inflation in Tokyo, which excludes volatile fresh food prices, slowed to 2.9% in July, following a 3.1% rise in June, below expectations.
An HSBC report released Friday indicated that the Bank of Japan may raise interest rates by 25 basis points at its October meeting following the tariff consolidation, which could put the Bank of Japan’s path toward normalizing its old policy back on track. The Nikkei index closed the session at 41,456 points, down 0.88%, or 370 points. The Topix index of the Tokyo Stock Exchange fell today by approximately 0.86%, closing at 2,895,134. Both indices recorded weekly gains of more than 4%, with automakers Mazda and Mitsubishi leading the Nikkei’s losses, with declines of more than 6%.
Chinese indices also declined in today’s closing session. The broader Chinese CSI300 index fell by approximately 0.53%, closing at 4,127 points, while the Shanghai Composite index closed down 0.33%, closing at 3,593. The Hang Seng Index, the main index tracking the largest technology companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, fell by approximately 1.02% today, closing at 25,405 points, with Kuaishou leading the declines, falling by more than 4.5%.
Conversely, the South Korean Kospi index rose by approximately 0.18% today, closing at 3,196 points.
The Indian Sensex index lost approximately 0.75% before closing at 81,568 points, while the Nifty 50 index fell by approximately 0.83%, trading at 24,853 points.
Indian Minister of Industry and Commerce Piyush Goyal stated that negotiations with the United States are progressing well, and that India hopes to secure a preferential deal and better terms compared to the tariffs agreed upon with Japan and Vietnam. New Zealand stock markets closed with gains today, with the NZX50 index rising 0.38% to close at 12,853 points, while Australia’s ASX200 index fell 0.49% to close at 8,666 points, marking a new record high. Singapore’s main index fell 0.24% in pre-market trading.