Market Update
Asian markets closed mixed on Friday, giving up early morning gains and trading in the red for most of the day's session.
India's Sensex was the only index closing significantly higher, up a full percentage point. The Hang Seng only just managed to close in positive territory, up 0.2%.
The S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.4% while the Shanghai Composite remained unchanged as uncertainties over the country's economic outlook proving to be an overhang for the market. The Nikkei closed down 0.1% at 9,607 points.
As expected, the Bank of Japan continued to hold interest rates to record near-zero levels in its bid to boost the economy that was hit by March's devastating earthquake. The yen slipped against most peers.
Stocks on the Move
Losses in the utilities sector weighed down sentiment in Tokyo with the added uncertainty from a possible break-up of energy companies and the still ongoing battle to limit problems arising from the nuclear crisis at Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco). Chubu Electric Power was down 4.7%.
Shares in Tepco, however, ended 2.5% higher after the troubled power maker posted a smaller-than-expected full-year loss of $15 billion.
Deal news boosted individual stocks with Toshiba, after announcing an acquisition of Swiss firm Landis+Gyr, adding 0.9% while Takeda Pharmaceutical, which is taking over Swiss drug-maker Nycomed, rose 0.4%.
In Australia, weakness in resource stocks weighed on the index. Shares of BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto fell over 1% each after Western Australia said it would raise tax on iron ore mined in the state.
India's Sensex, which has lost over 6% in the past month, however, managed to stay in the green, led by gains in capital goods and power.
But oil companies' shares slid after the government increased the burden of fuel subsidy payable by state run companies to refiners. Oil & Natural Gas Company (ONGC) and GAIL ended down over 1% and 0.5%, respectively.
Volume toppers included engineering major Larsen & Toubro, which reported higher-than-expected margins and lower interest costs on Thursday. The stock closed up over 3.5%. Tata Power, another company that reported its quarterly numbers Thursday, closed up just under 2%.