Investing.com– Asian stocks were mixed on Friday as investors turned cautious ahead of key U.S. jobs data that could influence expectations for the Federal Reserve’s interest rate move, while high bond yields and oil prices weighed on risk appetite.
Wall Street finished slightly higher on Thursday after a sharp rise in Treasury yields eased later in the session.
U.S. stock futures rose slightly in Asian trading at 0641 GMT.
Hang Seng falls 3%, Nikkei down
Japan closed 0.9% lower, while the broader index slipped 1%.
Hong Kong was the biggest loser among major regional markets, falling 3% to an 11-week low around 23,900 points.
The decline came as investors returned from Thursday’s vacation to a sharp rise in global bond yields and renewed concerns over oil supplies.
Technology stocks were also under pressure in Hong Kong. The subindex is trading down 2.5%.
South Korea’s rose slightly by 0.5%, after oscillating between gains and losses earlier in the day.
Elsewhere, Australia ended the session up 0.8%, while Singapore fell 0.6%.
Markets in mainland China remained closed for the National Day Golden Week and are expected to reopen on October 8.
Indian markets were also closed on Friday for Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti.
Tokyo Core CPI Rises 2.7% YoY; US jobs data expected
Data showed central Tokyo grew 2.7% year-on-year in September, an acceleration from 1.8% in August and beating market forecasts of 2.4%.
The data comes after a summary of the Bank of Japan’s September meeting showed that some policymakers saw the need to accelerate interest rate hikes amid rising inflation risks.
The BoJ raised its key rate to 1.25%, while investors are eyeing the possibility of a further hike at its October or December meetings.
Attention now turns to the United States, expected later on Friday. Economists expect the economy to have added 89,000 jobs in September, with unemployment steady at 4.1%.
Markets are pricing in a roughly 25% chance of a Federal Reserve rate hike in October, down sharply from 69% the previous week, while a December hike remains fully priced in, according to CME FedWatch.
Bond markets remained a major source of volatility. The price rose to 5.34% on Thursday, its highest since 2002, before falling to around 5.25% in Asian trading.
Rising long-term yields have pushed up borrowing costs globally and added pressure on stock valuations.
Oil prices have added to inflationary concerns. The price of a barrel remained above $102 as the United States plans to increase its military presence in the Middle East, while China has halted its exports of petroleum products.
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