Asia report: Stocks mixed as markets brace for Warsh address

(Sharecast News) - Stocks across Asia were mixed on Friday as investors worldwide awaited a key speech from the head of the Federal Reserve to give clues about the future path of interest rates.

The Nikkei 225 rose 0.4%, the Sensex gained 0.3% and the Hang Seng edged 0.1% higher, while the Shanghai Composite and STI both fell 0.1% and the KOSPI dropped 1.8%.

South Korea's KOSPI had risen strongly on Thursday after Nvidia's blockbuster earnings gave domestic AI and chip names a big boost.

According to Patrick Munnelly, partner of market strategy at Tickmill Group, markets were trading with a "cautious mixed bias" on Friday with investors "refrain[ing] from taking aggressive directional positions ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's address at the Jackson Hole symposium".

Warsh is expected to give a speech at 1500 BST and is under pressure to provide some clarity on interest rates given the recent pick-up in price pressures, with this week's release of the Fed's preferred measure of inflation, the PCE price index, coming in above forecasts for July.

"The market will want to see some evidence that Warsh has a plan on how to tackle inflationary pressures and will also be hungry for visibility on the likely trajectory of interest rates," said Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell.

"Having shot back above $90 per barrel yesterday on suggestions from Washington that there are no live negotiations with Iran, the price of oil has settled back below this threshold on signs that some exports from the Gulf are making it through."

Oil prices edged lower on Friday, with Brent down 0.4% at $88.17 a barrel.