China stocks led losses in Asia Friday as Beijing’s affirmation of its recent policy shifts and plans to boost growth, following a high-profile meeting Thursday, appeared to have fallen short of investors’ expectations.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index dropped 378.7 points, or 1%, to 39,470.44.
Investors also assessed the Bank of Japan’s Tankan survey, which showed a higher-than-expected optimism among large Japanese manufacturers.
The Tankan index for large manufacturing firms climbed to 14 in the quarter ended December, up from 13 in the September quarter and beating the 12 expected from economists polled by Reuters.
The index tracks business sentiment in the country among large companies and contributes to the BOJ’s considerations when forming monetary policy. A higher figure means that optimists outnumber pessimists, and vice versa.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng slumped 425.81 points, or 2.1%, to 19.971.24.
Korea’s Kospi gained, marking a four-day winning streak. Internet firm Kakao gained over 5%, with many of its subsidiaries seeing huge gains. Shares of Samsung Biologics, the fourth-largest company in the Kospi by market cap, rose 3.6%.
In other markets
In Shanghai, the CSI 300 shed 95.32 points, or 2.4%, to 3,933.18
In Taiwan, the Taiex hiked 143.17 points, or 0.6%, to 23,046.80
In Korea, the Kospi index sank 26.32 points, or 0.1%, to 2,494.46
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index inched forward 1.08 points at 3,810.35
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 resurged 61.54 points, or 0.5%, to 12,754.26.
In Australia, the ASX 200 slipped 34.3 points, or 0.4%, to 8,295.96.
