Asian Shares Mixed As Markets Brace For Warsh's Jackson Hole Debut

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks turned in a mixed performance on Thursday as Chinese industrial profits data disappointed and firmer-than-expected U.S. inflation data kept expectations for a Fed rate hike by year-end live.

The U.S. dollar moved in a narrow range ahead of Kevin Warsh's first Jackson Hole speech as Fed Chair on Friday that could provide further clues on the path for U.S interest rates.

Gold was steady at $4,598 an ounce after a pullback on Wednesday. Brent crude futures slipped toward $87 a barrel, extending losses for a fourth consecutive session on easing supply concerns.

Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani will visit the Iranian capital today in an effort to relaunch peace talks between the U.S. and Iran.

China's Shanghai Composite index climbed 1.13 percent to 3,956.57 as investors looked for fresh policy support from the ongoing National People's Congress Standing Committee meeting.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index dipped 0.34 percent to 25,565.74 after data showed growth in China's industrial profits slowed for a third straight month to the weakest pace this year.

Z.AI Co shares soared 12.6 percent after the company launched GLM-5.3-Flash, a new AI model claimed to run only on Chinese chips.

Japanese markets ended slightly lower after a choppy session. The Nikkei average slipped 0.20 percent to 66,131.98 while the broader Topix index settled 0.15 percent higher at 4,117.22.

Nvidia supplier Advantest tumbled 3 percent while memory chip maker Kioxia surged 5 percent and Fujikura, a maker of fiber-optic cables, rallied 3.7 percent.

Seoul stocks rallied as the Bank of Korea raised rates for a second straight time, as widely expected, and lifted its projections for growth and core inflation this year.

The Kospi index jumped 1.53 percent to 6,912.37, extending gains for a third straight session. Samsung Electronics advanced 1.7 percent and SK Hynix surged 2.5 percent following better-than-expected earnings results and guidance from Nvidia.

Australian markets fell sharply, with banks, consumer discretionary and mining stocks leading losses. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.98 percent to 9,038.20 as strong household spending data prompted traders to price in another interest rate hike in September.

The broader All Ordinaries index fell 1.02 percent to 9,243.20. Retail giant Wesfarmers plunged 4.6 percent after delivering weaker-than-expected earnings.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index fell 0.95 percent to 13,880.05, erasing gains in the morning session.

U.S. stocks ended slightly lower overnight while bond yields moved higher after a report showed inflation rose 3.7 percent in the 12 months through July, coming in slightly above expectations while core inflation stood at 3.3 percent.

Separate data showed the U.S. economy grew 1.5 percent in the second quarter, unchanged from the previous advance reading.

The Dow dipped 0.2 percent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.1 percent and the S&P 500 finished marginally lower.