Asian Shares Mixed Before Warsh's Jakson Hole Debut

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks ended mixed on Friday as investors looked for greater clarity over whether talks between Iran and Qatar might open the Strait of Hormuz and reduce supply disruptions from the Middle East war.

Traders also awaited Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh's speech at the Jackson Hole economic symposium later in the day for clues regarding potential interest rate hikes this year.

The U.S. dollar index was little changed near a one-week high against major peers while U.S. Treasury yields inched up slightly ahead of Warsh's speech.

Gold edged up marginally to $4,608 an ounce and was on course for its strongest monthly advance since 1999 in the wake of the Treasury's plan to keep bond yields down.

Brent crude futures fell half a percent to $88.14 a barrel and were on track to snap a two-week winning streak amid improving supply prospects through the Strait of Hormuz.

China's Shanghai Composite index slid 0.11 percent to 3,952.18 as power equipment stocks such as Sungrow and Sieyuan Electric tumbled in the wake of a new U.S. order targeting certain foreign-made power equipment.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fluctuated before finishing marginally higher at 25,584.79.

Japanese markets advanced as tech and chip stocks followed their U.S. peers higher.

The yen edged lower for the fifth consecutive session against the dollar even as data showed underlying inflation in Tokyo accelerated for a third consecutive month in August, bolstering the case for a September Bank of Japan rate hike.

The Nikkei average edged up 0.41 percent to 66,405.56 while the broader Topix index closed up 0.72 percent at 4,146.71.

While security software firm Trend Micro soared 5.9 percent, chip-related heavyweight Advantest about 2 percent.

Kioxia Holdings plunged 8.8 percent after the memory chip maker announced plans to construct a new production facility at its plant in northern Japan.

Seoul stocks tumbled amid concerns over U.S. semiconductor tariffs and caution before the Jackson Hole meeting.

The Kospi index slumped 1.79 percent to 6,788.88, snapping its three-day losing streak after reports suggested that Washington is considering a new tariff on imported semiconductors. Samsung Electronics lost 3.4 percent and SK Hynix plummeted 4.4 percent.

Australian markets rose notably, with mining, consumer staples and technology stocks leading the surge. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.60 percent to 9,092.30 while the broader All Ordinaries index settled 0.55 percent higher at 9,294.30.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index fell 0.81 percent to 13,768.18, extending losses from the previous session.

U.S. stocks closed higher overnight as upbeat earnings and guidance from Nvidia helped ease fears about the sustainability of the artificial-intelligence boom.

CrowdStrike's upbeat outlook and Salesforce's announcement of a deal with Anthropic to offer its services through Claude also fueled gains in technology and semiconductor shares.

However, buying interest waned later in the session as Brent crude prices surged more than $2 per barrel after the White House confirmed it was not in talks with Iran despite diplomatic efforts by other countries.

In economic releases, jobless claims slid again last week, while wholesale inventories jumped far above forecasts in July and the merchandise-trade deficit widened in July to the largest since early last year, a slew of reports showed.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged 1.6 percent, the S&P 500 advanced 0.7 percent and the Dow added 0.2 percent.