Asian Shares Rise On Optimism About US Economy

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks advanced on Friday as strong GDP and labor data hinted at a soft landing for the world's largest economy.

The dollar held near a one-week high versus major peers and was on track to snap a five-week losing streak ahead of the release of Federal Reserve's preferred inflation metric due later in the day, expected to show a slight tick-up in price pressures in July.

The Federal Reserve is all but certain to cut interest rates by 25 basis points next month amid signs that inflation is heading down to the central bank's goal.

Gold was marginally lower in Asian trading while oil extended overnight gains following positive U.S. economic data and escalating supply disruptions in Libya. China's Shanghai Composite index rose 0.68 percent to 2,842.21 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rallied 1.14 percent to 17,989.07 as investors scooped up electric vehicle makers like Li Auto and BYD after a recent sell-off.

Japanese markets ended at one-month highs as a weaker yen lifted export-related stocks.

The Nikkei average settled 0.74 percent higher at 38,647.75, marking its highest level since July 31. The broader Topix index gained 0.73 percent to close at 2,712.63.

Data released today showed Japan's industrial production rose by 2.8 percent sequentially in July, slightly below the expected 3.3 percent.

Tokyo CPI data for August showed further acceleration in inflation, while retail sales growth slowed to 2.6 percent year-on-year in July, down from 3.7 percent in June. The unemployment rate rose to 2.7 percent from 2.5 percent.

Seoul stocks advanced despite industrial production falling more than expected in July. The Kospi average rose 0.45 percent to 2,674.31 after falling by more than 1 percent the previous day following an underwhelming result by AI chipmaker Nvidia.

Australian markets closed higher led by industrials, gold miners and energy stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.58 percent to 8,091.90 while the broader All Ordinaries index ended up 0.64 percent at 8,316.70.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index jumped 0.76 percent to 12,447.68.

U.S. stocks ended mixed overnight as Nvidia's underwhelming earnings result offset positive labor market and GDP data.

Revised data revealed the U.S. economy grew at a 3 percent annual pace in the second quarter instead of the 2.8 percent rate originally estimated, amid strong consumer spending and downward revisions to the pace of consumer price growth.

Another report showed jobless claims ticked down by 2000 to 231000 for the week of Aug. 24.

The Dow rose 0.6 percent to a new record closing high while the S&P 500 finished marginally lower and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite eased 0.2 percent.