By Mia Lamar
Asian stock markets were mostly higher Friday, with shares in
Sydney hitting a fresh five-year high after Wall Street snapped a
long losing streak.
The S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.3%, its highest level since
mid-2008. Signs of economic stabilization in China-- Australia's
largest trading partner -- have spurred a strong quarter for the
Australian market, one of the Asia's best performers with a 10%
increase so far in the third quarter.
Stocks in the U.S. rose overnight as investors set aside
concerns over budget and debt-ceiling wrangling in Washington,
sending the S&P 500 (SPX) up 0.3% for its first positive close
in six sessions.
"Investors appear to be prepared to ride through the noise of
political brinkmanship at this stage," said Ric Spooner, chief
market analyst at CMC Markets in Sydney.
Australia's major banks and heavyweight miners traded higher in
early trade. Rio Tinto rose 0.5% and Commonwealth Bank of Australia
added 0.4%.
Japanese shares failed to take encouragement from the U.S.
session with the Nikkei trading down 0.2%, as a firmer yen kept
many buyers at bay. The U.S. dollar traded at Yen98.94 against the
Japanese currency, compared with Yen99.02 late Thursday in New
York.
A lackluster inflation reading also weighed on investor
sentiment in Tokyo. Core consumer prices rose 0.8% nationwide in
August, slightly stronger than economists predicted, although
prices in the capital city of Tokyo recorded a weaker-than-expected
increase.
"The Bank of Japan has been publicizing this apparent inflation,
but we'll see that is not necessarily what is happening," said
Yuichi Kodama, chief economist at Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance.
South Korea's Kospi edged 0.3% higher.
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