Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index edged lower on Friday and Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average slipped for a second trading session as investors looked ahead to the Bank of Japan's policy meeting for signals on its rate-hike path, said Wang Ying, a market analyst for China Global Television Network (CGTN).
Hong Kong's stock market declined on Friday with the benchmark Hang Seng Index down 0.29 percent to close at 26,844.96 points.
The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index lost 0.50 percent to end at 9,220.81 points, and the Hang Seng Tech Index edged down 0.11 percent to 5,822.18 points.
"The market performance there was sort of gloomy today, though investor sentiment actually improved a bit after PBOC official said China's central bank sees some space to cut further, both, the reserve requirement ratio and policy rates this year, to aid growth," said Wang.
"The Hang Seng Index fell 0.29 percent, and the Hang Seng Tech Index lost 0.11 percent, with Alibaba Health losing 5.16 percent to drag the index down. Stocks of basic materials, energy and consumer sectors were leading losses, while shares of utilities and industrials sectors outperformed. In focus today, Pop Mart continued its downtrend from the previous day, and eroded 5.6 percent amid short selling pressure," said Wang.
Additionally, Tokyo stocks ended lower Friday, as the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average fell 174.33 points, or 0.32 percent, from Thursday to 53,936.17.
"Japan's Nikkei share average slipped for a second consecutive session, extending losses from the previous session as investors looked ahead to the Bank of Japan's policy meeting next week for any signals on its rate-hike path. The central bank is widely expected to hold policy steady next week, with markets betting on the next rate hike around June. Political uncertainty also weighed on sentiment. And in addition, the yen gained some ground amid fears of possible intervention by Japanese authorities, which pressured the earnings outlook for Japan's export-heavy industries," said Wang.
The U.S. dollar briefly slipped to around the 158 yen line in Tokyo as the yen was bought on wariness over possible yen-buying intervention after Japan's finance minister signaled the government is ready to take "decisive action" to stem the currency's depreciation.
Hong Kong stock markets edge lower as Tokyo stocks decline amid policy uncertainty: analyst
