Asian shares mixed at open as Wall Street ends with modest gains

Asian equities are likely to have a bumpy ride on Friday after U.S. stocks scaled new peaks for a third straight day and bond yields surged on the Federal Reserve’s average-inflation strategy, as well as a promising development in curbing the coronavirus pandemic.

Stocks

• Japan’s Nikkei 225 futures added 0.09%, while the Nikkei 225 index closed the overnight session down 0.35%
• Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures rose 0.05%.
• On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 160.35 points, or 0.57%, to 28,492.27, the S&P 500 gained 5.82 points, or 0.17%, at 3,484.55, both setting new intraday highs.
• The Nasdaq Composite dropped 39.72 points, or 0.34%, to 11,625.34.
• MSCI’s gauge of stocks across the globe shed 0.14%.

Oil Price

• Crude oil declined 0.28% to $42.90 per barrel as Hurricane Laura, which initially made landfall in the heart of the U.S. oil industry and forced oil rigsand refineries to shut down, began to weaken.
• The dollar index rose 0.217%, with the euro down 0.03% to $1.1818 and spot gold prices dropped 0.1% to $1,927.81 an ounce.