Asian stocks mostly up, while Japan’s Nikkei falls ahead of weekend elections

HONG KONG (AP) — Asian stocks were mostly higher on Friday except Japan, where investors awaited the outcome of a rate cut. vote Sunday.

US futures fell and oil prices rose.

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who took office just weeks ago, called for a snap general election to boost support as the ruling Liberal Democrats grapple with a political financing scandal. Recent turmoil has increased uncertainty in markets and complicated the Bank of Japan’s efforts to move away from long-term near-zero interest rates.

Core inflation in Japan’s capital stood at 1.8% in October, falling below the central bank’s 2% target for the first time in five months, the government said. This strengthened expectations that the central bank will not change the interest rate at the policy meeting to be held next week.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index lost 1% to 37,771.79, while the Japanese yen gained against the US dollar. The dollar fell to 151.64 yen from 151.89 yen early Friday.

The Hong Kong Hang Seng index increased by 1.1% to 20,720.60 points, and the Shanghai Composite index increased by 0.8% to 3,307.14 points.

China’s central bank kept its medium-term lending interest rate unchanged at 2 percent. The bank also provided one-year medium-term loan facilities worth 700 billion yuan ($98.3 billion) to financial institutions, according to the bank’s statement.

On the other hand, South Korea’s Kospi index increased by 0.3% to 2,590.30 points, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index increased by 0.1% to 8,216.50 points. Taiwan’s Taiex index rose 0.3%.

The S&P 500 rose 0.2% to 5,809.86 points on Thursday, breaking its first three-day losing streak since early September. It bounced between losses and gains throughout the day, splitting roughly evenly between rising and falling stocks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average index decreased by 0.3 percent to 42,374.36 points, and the Nasdaq index increased by 0.8 percent to 18,415.49 points.

Tesla led the market with a 21.9% increase after the electric vehicle maker’s report better profit more than analysts expected in the latest quarter. An optimistic CEO Elon Musk also predicted a 20% to 30% increase in sales next year, but revenue for the latest quarter fell short of analysts’ forecasts. It was the best day for Tesla shares since 2013.

Boeing lost 1.2 percent after its machinists voted they continue their strikeThis disrupted aircraft production. More than 60 percent of union members who voted for the proposed contract rejected it, keeping them on the picket line There are six weeks left until their strike.

Stocks have fallen significantly this week after the S&P 500 and Dow set records at the end of last week. They have been hurt by rising Treasury yields in the bond market, which can make investors less willing to pay high prices for stocks. Critics had previously said the stocks looked too expensive, given that their prices were rising much faster than company profits.

A report on unemployment claims was released Thursday a mixed picture in the job market. It was stated that fewer workers applied for unemployment benefits last week, which may be a sign of relatively low layoffs. However, it was also stated that the total number of aid collectors reached the highest level in almost three years.

Treasury yields, which eased overnight, pared their losses after the unemployment claims report was released before the yoyo. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 4.20% from 4.25% at the end of Wednesday. It is still well above the 4.08% level at the end of last week.

Growth in U.S. business activity may have accelerated slightly last month as the strength of companies in service sectors continued to offset weakness in manufacturing, a separate preliminary report said. S&P Global’s report showed that confidence is also rebounding as companies expect greater stability and certainty after the upcoming presidential election.

Meanwhile, a third report said new home sales were stronger last month than economists expected.

In other trading early Friday, benchmark U.S. crude rose 10 cents to $70.29 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 13 cents to $74.16 a barrel.

The euro fell from $1.0828 to $1.0821.

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AP Business Writer Stan Choe contributed.