CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stock markets are mostly lower on Friday in subdued trading despite the positive cues overnight from Wall Street. Investors remained cautious as a U.S. stimulus deal remained elusive and as they awaited the release of the closely watched U.S. jobs data for September later in the day. The markets in China, Hong Kong, India, Taiwan and South Korea are closed for holidays.
The U.S. House of Representatives approved a $2.2 trillion Democratic coronavirus stimulus plan on Thursday night. However, the bill is unlikely to be approved by the Republican-held Senate.
The Australian market is declining.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is losing 61.70 points or 1.05 percent to 5,811.20 and the broader All Ordinaries Index is lower by 57.90 points or 0.95 percent to 6,011.50. Australian stocks snapped a three-day losing streak to close notably higher on Thursday.
Among the major miners, BHP Group is losing more than 2 percent, Fortescue Metals is lower by more than 1 percent and Rio Tinto is declining 1 percent.
In the oil sector, Oil Search is lower by almost 2 percent, while Santos and Woodside Petroleum are sliding more than 1 percent each after crude oil prices tumbled overnight.
Gold miners are also weak even as gold prices rose to a two-week high overnight. Evolution Mining is declining almost 1 percent and Newcrest Mining is down 0.4 percent.
Among the big four banks, National Australia Bank, Westpac and ANZ Banking are lower in a range of 0.7 percent to 1.0 percent, while Commonwealth Bank is edging up 0.1 percent.
Bucking the trend, tech stocks are higher. Afterpay and WiseTech are rising more than 3 percent each, while Appen is advancing more than 1 percent.
In economic news, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said that the total value of retail sales in Australia was down a seasonally adjusted 4.0 percent on month in August, coming in at A$29.481 billion. That beat forecasts for a drop of 4.2 percent following the 3.2 percent gain in July.
The Japanese market is rising as trading resumed after being halted for the entire day on Thursday due to a technical issue. Investors tracked the overnight gains on Wall Street, but remained cautious ahead of the release of U.S. jobs data later in the day.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is adding 86.04 points or 0.37 percent to 23,271.16, after touching a high of 23,365.58 in early trades.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is rising more than 2 percent and Fast Retailing is advancing more than 1 percent.
Meanwhile, the major exporters are lower despite a slightly weaker yen. Panasonic and Canon are declining more than 1 percent each, while Sony is lower by 0.5 percent and Mitsubishi Electric is down 0.4 percent.
In the financial sector, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is rising more than 2 percent and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is adding more than 1 percent. Among automakers, Honda is rising almost 2 percent, while Toyota Motor is edging down 0.1 percent.
In the oil sector, Japan Petroleum is gaining almost 4 percent, while Inpex is lower by almost 1 percent. In the tech sector, Tokyo Electron is higher by almost 2 percent and Advantest is adding almost 1 percent.
Among the other major gainers, Isetan Mitsukoshi is climbing more than 7 percent, Rakuten is rising almost 7 percent, J Front Retailing is higher by more than 5 percent and Unitika is advancing almost 5 percent.
Conversely, Mitsui Mining & Smelting is losing almost 4 percent, while Fujitsu and Daiichi Sankyo are lower by more than 3 percent each. Mitsubishi Materials is declining almost 3 percent.
On the economic front, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said that the unemployment rate in Japan came in at a seasonally adjusted 3.0 percent in August. That was in line with expectations and up from 2.9 percent in July.
Japan will also see September data for consumer confidence today.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the mid 105 yen-range on Friday.
Elsewhere in Asia, Singapore, New Zealand, Indonesia are also lower, while Malaysia is higher. The markets in Taiwan, China and Hong Kong are closed on Friday for the Mid-Autumn Festival, while South Korea is closed for the Chuseok Festival.
On Wall Street, stocks closed higher on Thursday, adding to the gains posted in the previous session, as traders continued to express optimism lawmakers will ultimately reach a deal on a new coronavirus relief bill. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin continue to work toward a potential agreement, although a spokesman for the Democratic leader noted 'distance on key areas remain.' On the U.S. economic front, the Labor Department released a report showing a bigger than expected drop in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended September 26.
The Nasdaq surged up 159.00 points or 1.4 percent to 11,326.51, its best closing level in nearly a month. The Dow posted a more modest gain, inching up 35.20 points or 0.1 percent to 27,816.90, while the S&P 500 climbed 17.80 points or 0.5 percent at 3,380.80.
Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on Thursday. While the German DAX Index dipped by 0.2 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index edged up by 0.2 percent and the French CAC 40 Index rose by 0.4 percent.
Crude oil prices declined sharply on Thursday, weighed down by concerns about the outlook for energy demand. WTI crude for November fell $1.50 or about 3.7 percent at $38.72 a barrel.
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