The Asian markets closed mixed on Friday, due to the mixed cues overnight from Wall Street following the Fed-inspired rally seen in the previous session. The Bank of Japan in minutes released from its February 17-18 board meeting reported that consumer prices may flatten and real wages may also drop as a sharp drop in global oil prices takes its toll. The remarks suggest continued concern over hitting a target of sustained 2% inflation this fiscal year even as economic growth looks more promising, adding that the pace of buying government bonds to support easing needs to be assessed. Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda stated that the longer-term domestic price trend is still upward because the base effect of last year’s plunge in crude oil prices on consumer inflation will disappear eventually. Kuroda added that market participants are unlikely to seek any monetary policy implications in what is projected to a temporary downward effect of lower energy prices on the year-on-year change in core CPI, which is set to slip further to zero and into negative territory. Kuroda repeated that the BoJ can anchor 2% inflation around fiscal 2015 ending March 31, 2016. Japan’s All Industries Activity Index rose to a seasonally adjusted 1.9%, from -0.1% in the preceding month whose figure was revised up from -0.3%.
Asian Indices Last Trade Change in Points Change in % Shanghai 3,617.32 35.05 0.98 Hang Seng 24,375.24 -93.65 -0.38 Jakarta Composite 5,443.07 -10.79 -0.20 KLSE Composite 1,803.65 -5.48 -0.30 Nikkei 225 19,560.22 83.66 0.43 Straits Times 3,412.44 26.28 0.78 KOSPI Composite 2,037.24 -0.65 -0.03 Taiwan Weighted 9,749.69 12.96 0.13
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