A view of an automated container port in Qingdao, East China's Shandong Province.
Zhang Jinggang | Future release | Good pictures
Asia-Pacific shares were mixed on Friday, as investors watched economic data from China and digested Japan's housing spending numbers, while markets also weighed in on a rate cut by the European Central Bank.
China's May exports beat expectations, rising 7.6% against the 6% expected by a Reuters poll of economists and higher than the 1.5% rise seen in April. Imports rose 1.8% year-on-year, missing the 4.2% expected in a Reuters poll.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 0.75% to reverse earlier gains after the trading data announcement, while China's CSI 300 fell 0.50% to close at 3,574.11. This marked three consecutive days of losses for the mainland index.
Japan released its household spending figures for April – a key gauge to assess whether the Bank of Japan's expected « virtuous cycle » of rising wages and prices is underway.
Average monthly consumption expenditures per household in April were 313,300 yen, up 3.4% in nominal terms and 0.5% in real terms. This marked the first rise in real household spending since February 2023.
April wages are mainly watched as wage increases usually take effect during this month, which marks the start of Japanese companies' fiscal years.
of Japan Nikki 225 The index fell 0.05% to 38,683.93, while the broader-based Topix fell to 2,755.03.
of South Korea Cosby The small-cap COST rose 1.81% to 866.18, up 1.23% to end at 2,722.67, as investors returned from a public holiday.
Australian S&P/ASX 200 Up 0.49%, marking a three-day winning streak.
Overnight in the U.S., markets were range-bound as traders awaited the non-farm payrolls report for May, with investors looking for signs of a weaker labor market that could support Federal Reserve rate cuts.
The S&P 500 ended slightly lower on Thursday. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.09%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2%.
« To me, the market is still saying the economy is good and the recession hasn't printed anything, » said Ross Mayfield, investment strategist at Baird. « But the Fed has already been too tight for too long and the cooling job market momentum will be hard to stop once it starts. »
— CNBC's Brian Evans and Samantha Subin contributed to this report.
Correction: The title of this story has been updated to reflect that Japan's spending data missed estimates.
