Employees work at the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE), operated by Japan Exchange Group Inc. (JPX), in Tokyo, Japan, on Thursday, Jan. 4, 2024.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Japan and China stocks closed higher Friday, while most markets in the Asia-Pacific region stay shut for a public holiday.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index gained 0.5% to end at 40,369.44, after falling about 1.5% in the previous session. The broader Topix rose 0.65% to close at 2,768.62 following declines of 1.7%.
The Japanese yen will be closely watched during the session amid speculation of a possible intervention after the currency recently hit 34-year lows against the U.S. dollar at 151.97. It last traded at 151.41 against the greenback.
China’s CSI 300 index closed 0.47% to 3,537.48.
South Korea’s Kospi closed near flat at 2,746.63, while the smaller-cap Kosdaq was down 0.5% at 905.5.
Hong Kong, Singapore, India, Australia and New Zealand were among the major Asia-Pacific markets shut for the Good Friday holiday.
On Wall Street, the benchmark S&P 500 index clocked its best first-quarter performance in five years.
The index ended Thursday 0.11% higher, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.12%. Both indexes closed at record highs. The Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.12%.
— CNBC’s Lisa Kailai Han and Pia Singh contributed to this report.
