Asian stocks close mostly higher, in the wake of NY after inflation data

Asian stock markets closed mostly higher on Friday (13), after Wall Street advanced for the third day in a row on Thursday with confirmation that inflation in the US slowed down further.

The Hang Seng index rose 1.04% in Hong Kong, to 21,738.66 points, while the South Korean Kospi advanced 0.89% in Seoul, to 2,386.09 points, after the BoK, as the local central bank is known , raise its base rate by another 25 basis points to 3.50%, as expected.

In the Taiwanese market, Taiex secured a gain of 0.63%, at 14,824.13 points.

In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite rose 1.01%, to 3,195.31 points, and the less comprehensive Shenzhen Composite advanced 0.90%, to 2,067.15 points.

The positive tone prevailed after New York stock markets rose for the third consecutive session on Thursday, supported by hopes that the Federal Reserve (Fed, the US BC) will start raising interest rates at a more moderate pace after data confirming that consumer inflation (CPI) had another deceleration in December.

With the focus still on the US, Chinese trade balance numbers revealed this morning were in the background. In December, both exports and imports from China suffered strong annual declines, but not as intense as expected.

The notable negative exception in Asia today was the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The Nikkei index fell 1.25% to 26,119.52 points, amid speculation that the Bank of Japan (BoJ) may give in and tighten its ultra-accommodative monetary policy at a meeting next week, as yields of the 10-year Japanese government bond (JGB) briefly surpassed the official ceiling of 0.50%.

In Oceania, the Australian stock exchange followed Wall Street and the positive bias of the Asian region, and the S&P/ASX 200 advanced 0.66% in Sydney, at 7,328.10 points.