Most of the Asian equity benchmarks are trading lower in the early deals on Friday despite the prospect of the Federal Reserve keeping monetary policy accommodative. Meanwhile, crude oil prices slipped in Asian trades after rising overnight. Japan's Nikkei share average edged down as investors took profits on financial stocks that had soared in the previous session, and worries about a stronger yen that kept the market on edge. Among the other Asian markets, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Indonesia and Malaysia are edging down. Bucking the trend, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan are marginally higher.
Nikkei 225 slipped 33.80 points or 0.20% to 16,773.82, Hang Seng dipped 12.43 points or 0.05% to 23,747.37, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI decreased 1.04 points or 0.06% to 1,668.62, Shanghai Composite declined 2.69 points or 0.09% to 3,039.62, and Jakarta Composite was down by 8.67 points or 0.16% to 5,371.59.
On the flip side, Straits Times added 0.62 points or 0.02% to 2,846.68, KOSPI Index gained 0.71 points or 0.03% to 2,050.41, and Taiwan Weighted was up by 22.23 points or 0.24% to 9,257.49.