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Asia stocks set to trade mixed; Wall Street roars to new record highs
Stocks in Asia traded mixed Friday morning as shares on Wall Street jumped to new record highs overnight stateside.Japan’s Nikkei 225 was largely unchanged in early trade while the Topix index added 0.18%. In South Korea, the Kospi slipped 0.61% as shares of Hyundai Motor fell more than 1.5%.Japanese retail sales data for November released…
Stocks in Asia traded mixed Friday morning as shares on Wall Street jumped to new record highs overnight stateside.
Japan's Nikkei 225 was largely unchanged in early trade while the Topix index added 0.18%. In South Korea, the Kospi slipped 0.61% as shares of Hyundai Motor fell more than 1.5%.
Japanese retail sales data for November released earlier on Friday came in worse than expected. Retail sales declined 2.1% in November as compared with a year earlier, government data showed. That was below a median market forecast for a 1.7% decline, according to Reuters. The data follows a sales tax hike that went into effect in October.
Meanwhile, shares in Australia rose in morning trade as they returned from the holidays, with the S&P/ASX 200 rising 0.13%.
Overall, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan was largely unchanged.
Overnight stateside, stocks on Wall Street surged to new records. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 105.94 points to close at 28,621.39 while the S&P 500 added 0.51% to 3,239.91. The Nasdaq Composite ended its trading day 0.78% higher at 9,022.39, topping the 9,000 mark for the first time ever. The three major averages all hit new all-time highs.
Recent market sentiment has been boosted since the U.S. and China announced they have reached a phase one trade agreement earlier in December. The two economic powerhouses are in the midst of translating the deal, with the aim of signing it in early January.
In a regular press briefing on Thursday, the Chinese Commerce Ministry said China is in close touch with the U.S. on signing the initial trade pact. That came after U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday the deal is “getting done,” adding there will be a signing ceremony with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
“China has been lukewarm about the trade agreement, expressing less enthusiasm than the US but (Thursday's) comments is the strongest confirmation to date that there will be no reneging on the deal,” Kathy Lien, managing director of foreign exchange strategy at BK Asset Management, wrote in a note dated Thursday.
Currencies
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was last at 97.534 after seeing earlier highs around 97.7.
The Japanese yen traded at 109.48 after weakening to levels above 109.6 earlier in the week. The Australian dollar was at $0.6945 after rising from levels below $0.693 yesterday.
— CNBC's Yun Li contributed to this report.
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