The skyline of the central business district in Beijing on August 13, 2019. (Photo by WANG Zhao/AFP)
WANG ZHAO | AFP Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets opened mixed on Friday, as investors awaited key economic data from China and assessed Japan’s inflation numbers.
China’s third-quarter GDP is expected to come in at 4.5%, according to economists polled by Reuters, compared with 4.7% growth in the previous quarter.
China is set to release its house price index for September at 9:30 am local time.
For September, economists expect a mixed picture in the Chinese economy, with urban investment estimated to grow 3.3% annually, slower than 3.4% in the previous month, while retail sales could rise 2.5% in the year, growth faster than 2.1% in the month the past , according to data from LSEG.
Industrial production is expected to expand 4.5% in September from a year ago.
Japan’s headline inflation for September came in at 2.5%, while the core CPI – which excludes fresh food prices — rose 2.4% year on year compared to Reuters forecast of 2.3%.
Japan Nikkei 225 opened 0.5% higher while the broad-based Topix rose 0.34%.
South Korea’s bluechip Kospi was almost flat, while the small-cap Kosdaq fell 0.22%.
Futures for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index stood at 19,974, compared with the previous close of 20,079.1.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 since the day down 0.42%.
Overnight in the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied to a new record close after strong economic data eased lingering fears of a potential recession. The blue-chip index rose 161 points, or 0.37%, to 43,239.05.
The S&P 500 closed down 0.02% to settle at 5,841.47 after hitting an intraday record earlier in the session.
The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.04% inched higher, as chipmakers rallied, to end at 18,373.61.
All three indexes are tracking a positive week for the sixth time.
– CNBC’s Lisa Kailai Han and Hakyung Kim contributed to this report.
