The Japanese stock exchange closed on Friday with a clear profit. Other important indicators in Asia were also largely in the plus. Sentiment on the trading floors was helped by trade news. Beijing said it was sympathetic to personal trade meetings with the United States in September. The Ministry of Commerce also hinted that no additional countermeasures were taken against recent US tariff increases against China.
The leading Nikkei in Tokyo eventually ended 1.2 percent higher at 20,704.37 points. Japan Steel Works, among others, benefited from optimism. The share closed nearly 6 percent higher. Investors also received the latest data on Japanese industrial production, unemployment and retail sales.
In Hong Kong, the Chinese oil company Cnooc was highly regarded after the presentation of its half-year figures and won 6.5 percent. The Hang Seng Index was almost flat in the meantime. The stock market in Shanghai added 0.1 percent in the plus. The Kospi in Seoul won 1.8 percent higher after the South Korean central bank left the interest rate unchanged, as expected. The All Ordinaries in Sydney closed 1.4 percent higher.
Maurice Esma, a co-founder of EconomicInform is a freelance journalist with the expertise in international finance and corporate rights. The author can be reached by email maurice.eisma@economicinform.com
