Asian Stocks Advance While China Slips Ahead Of Policy Briefing

Most stocks in Asia advanced on Friday, overlooking the higher-than-anticipated inflation print and signs of a slowing labour market in the US.

The Japanese benchmark Nikkei 225 was 229 points, or 0.58% higher at 39,610, while South Korea's Kospi was up 1.5 points or 0.06% at 2,600 as of 10:48 a.m.

The equity benchmark in China—CSI 300—fell over 2% on Friday, a day ahead of the highly anticipated country’s finance minister's briefing where more stimulus is expected to aid economic revival.

South Korea's central bank, on Friday, lowered its key policy rate by a quarter-percentage-point to 3.25% on cooling of inflation.

The mixed trend in the latest data sets in the US brought back fears that the Federal Reserve will opt for a smaller rate cut next month or even maintain status quo.

The so-called core consumer price index—which excludes food and energy costs—increased 0.3% for a second month, more than forecasted in September. The core CPI rose 3.3% compared to the previous year versus the estimated 3.2%, stalling the Fed's inflation progress.

The weekly jobless claims in the US rose to 2.58 lakh—more than one-year high—against the estimated 2.30 lakh.

Following the mixed data point that added to the Fed's pressure, Wall Street ended lower as traders remained clueless about the upcoming rate decision. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.21% and 0.05%, respectively. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 0.14%.

Meanwhile, stocks in China will be back in the spotlight as analysts are expecting China to deploy as much as 2 trillion yuan ($283 billion) in fresh fiscal stimulus, Bloomberg News reported. This was according to a survey conducted while the country’s finance minister will precede the highly anticipated briefing on Saturday.

While the stocks in China declined in early trade on Thursday, the equity benchmark rose to end the session higher on expectations of measures to shore up the economy.

Elsewhere, the industrial production in India for August, due Friday, will likely see a small dip in, according to Bloomberg estimates.

Crude oil prices headed for a second weekly gain as tensions beefed up after Israel readied plans to retaliate against Iran on Thursday. Brent crude was trading 0.29% lower at $79.17 a barrel as of 6:07 a.m. IST. West Texas Intermediate was down 0.22% at $75.68.