Asian markets closed mixed at the close of trading on Friday, May 23, the closing session of the week, following Wall Street. Japanese indices rose as Japanese government bond yields fell during the session, while Chinese indices recorded declines at the close amid a lack of economic indicators from China.
Regarding economic data released this morning, figures from Japan showed that core inflation, excluding fresh food prices, accelerated to 3.5% in April, its highest reading since January 2023, compared to 3.2% in March. This was higher than expected, as rising rice prices, which doubled during the year, were the largest contributor to the rise in inflation in April. The Nikkei index closed at 37,160, up 0.47%, or 174 points, while the Topix index of the Tokyo Stock Exchange rose 0.68% today, closing at 2,735. Japan Steel and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries led the Nikkei’s gains, rising more than 10% and 5%, respectively.
A Reuters report indicated that Japan’s chief trade negotiator, Akazawa, plans to visit the United States on May 30 to hold a fourth round of trade negotiations, which previously failed. Japan is one of the countries most affected by the 25% tax on automobiles, steel, and aluminum products.
Chinese indices recorded declines in today’s closing session, with the broader CSI300 index falling 0.81% to close at 3,882 points, while the Shanghai Composite Index closed down 0.94% at 3,348. The Hang Seng Index, the main index of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, rose by approximately 0.24% today, closing at 23,601 points, with gains in pharmaceutical company CSPC leading the index with gains of more than 2%.
Conversely, the South Korean Kospi index fell by approximately 0.06% today, closing at 2,592 points.
India’s Sensex index rose by approximately 0.94% before closing at 81,712 points, while the Nifty 50 index rose by approximately 1.13%, trading at 24,887 points. New Zealand stock markets closed lower today despite a 0.8% rise in retail sales in the first quarter of this year. The New Zealand stock index NZX50 fell by about 0.52% to close at 12,596 points, while Australia’s ASX200 index rose by about 0.15% to close at 8,360 points. The main Singapore index fell by 0.11% in pre-closing trading.