CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stocks ended mixed on Friday after the White House said a final decision on whether to support Israeli military action against Tehran could come within two weeks.
As the conflict entered the eighth day, Israel and Iran continued to fire missiles and drones at each other with full force.
Residents in southern Israel have been rocked by more Iranian missile strikes while Israel has continued to hit dozens of targets in Iran.
The dollar was on the back foot in Asian trade while gold prices were set for a weekly loss of about 2 percent.
Brent crude futures fell 2 percent but still headed for a strong weekly gain after a 12 percent surge the previous week.
China's Shanghai Composite finished marginally lower at 3,359.90 after a choppy session as the People's Bank of China left its benchmark lending rates steady, as expected, following recent easing measures. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index jumped 1.26 percent to 23,530.48.
Japanese markets fell slightly as data showed the country's core inflation rose to 3.7 per cent in May - the highest since January 2023 - raising concerns about tighter monetary policy.
Meanwhile, the Bank of Japan's may policy meeting minutes showed the board was divided on the future inflation path.
The Nikkei average dipped 0.22 percent to 38,403.23 while the broader Topix index settled 0.75 percent lower at 2,771.26.
Game maker Nintendo slumped 4.1 percent and Uniqlo-brand owner Fast Retailing fell 1.8 percent while semiconductor test equipment supplier Advantest surged 4.2 percent.
Seoul stocks rallied, with big-cap tech shares leading gains on improved investor sentiment. The Kospi average soared 1.48 percent to 3,021.84, breaching the 3,000-point mark for the first time in more than three years.
Data showed South Korea's producer inflation slowed to 0.3 percent year-on-year in May 2025 from 0.8 percent in April. This is the lowest growth in prices since they fell in July 2023.
Australian markets ended lower as softer metal prices weighed on the mining sector. Banks also fell amid uncertainty around the Israel-Iran conflict.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 hit a two-week low before closing 0.21 percent lower at 8,505.50. The broader All Ordinaries index slipped 0.20 percent to 8,723.50. The New Zealand market was closed for New Year's Day.
U.S. stock markets were closed on Thursday in observance of Juneteenth 2025 National Independence Day.
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