Asian Stocks Mixed, Tokyo Hits Record High - AP News

Tokyo, Feb 26 (AP) Asian shares mostly declined on Monday, although Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei 225 index touched another record high in morning trading.

The Nikkei 225 gained 0.5 per cent to 39,309.76. Trading was closed in Tokyo for a holiday on Friday. The benchmark surged to an all-time high on Thursday.

In currency trading, the dollar edged up to 150.49 Japanese yen from 150.47 yen. The euro cost USD 1.0818, down from USD 1.0823.

The weakness of the yen is one factor attracting many foreign investors to Japanese shares, said Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management.

He said investors were selling to lock in profits from recent gains in Chinese markets, which have rallied slightly after a months-long slump.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng dipped 0.7 per cent to 16,606.31, while the Shanghai Composite dropped 0.7 per cent to 2,984.74.

Elsewhere in Asia, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was little changed, inching down less than 0.1 per cent to 7,641.50. South Korea's Kospi slipped 0.8 per cent to 2,647.34.

On Friday, Wall Street finished the week with a record high, mostly on the back of a strong technology sector. But some technology company shares weakened, or stood little changed, such as Nvidia.

The S&P 500 index rose less than 0.1 per cent to 5,088.80. That marks another record high for the benchmark index and its sixth winning week in the last seven.

Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2 per cent to 39,131.53. The Nasdaq slipped 0.3 per cent to 15,996.82.

Earnings remain the big focus this week, as a key indicator on where the US and global economies are headed. Among the US companies reporting results are home improvement retailer Lowe's, discount retailer Dollar Tree , computer maker HP and electronics retailer Best Buy.

More economic data are also upcoming on consumer sentiment, inflation and the US economy. An update on the pace of growth in the United States in the October-December quarter is due on Wednesday.

The Federal Reserve has been trying to tame inflation back to its target of 2 per cent. Previous data on consumer and wholesale prices came in hotter than Wall Street expected. Traders now expect the Fed to cut rates in June instead of March.

In energy trading, benchmark US crude lost 42 cents to USD 76.07 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the international standard, lost 40 cents to USD 80.40 a barrel.