Global stock markets were mixed in Friday trading, with Asian stocks generally finishing higher, though European markets opened lower. Japan's Nikkei fell as investors await Sunday's snap general election amid a political funding scandal that has accused Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's ruling Liberal Democratic Party of impropriety and may imperil their long-time majority and inject uncertainties into Japan's economic outlook, analysts said.
European stocks declined. In Germany, the DAX slipped 0.1 percent for the session to close at 19,417.91. The CAC 40 in France dropped 0.4 percent for the session, closing at 7,473.20, and the FTSE 100 in the U.K. lost 0.1 percent for the session to close at 8,258.16. The U.S. futures rose about 0.1 percent for both the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones.
But that trend is also approaching the Japanese market with inflationary as Tokyo's core inflation rose to 1.8% in October, though lower than the 2% target of the Bank of Japan. That further builds up expectations of the central bank maintaining the near-zero interest rates at the meeting scheduled for this week. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 dropped 0.6% to 37,913.92. The dollar continues to strengthen against the yen, selling at 151.99 yen.
Elsewhere, Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 0.5 percent to 20,590.15 and the Shanghai Composite was up 0.6 percent at 3,299.70. The central bank in China left its medium-term lending rate at 2 percent but lent a net of 700 billion yuan, or $98.3 billion, to financial institutions. The Kospi edged up 0.1 percent to 2,583.27 in South Korea. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 had also edged up, while Taiwan's Taiex added 0.7 percent.
US equities rose for the first time in three days, with Tesla climbing 21.9 percent after reporting a profitable quarter and Boeing sliding 1.2 percent as a machinist strike entered its third day. Mixed US labor data and Treasury yields higher this week have capped American stocks' gains since they established a historic record last week. The S&P 500 rose 0.2 percent Thursday, ending its first three-day losing streak since September.
New York crude oil prices increased for the second day in a row, with U.S. crude being up 7 cents at $70.26 a barrel and Brent crude being 6 cents higher at $74.09.