Japanese stocks were mixed as investors continued to assess the US and local central banks' divergence on interest rates.
The Topix rose 0.1% to 2,296.50 as of 3:02 p.m. Tokyo time, while the Nikkei declined 0.9% to 33,264.88. Financial stocks gained while tech shares fell.
The yen was little changed after dipping to a seven-month low overnight as US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled further rate hikes in order to combat inflation.
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial contributed the most to the Topix gain, increasing 3.8% over increasing speculation on BOJ move. Out of 2,156 stocks in the index, 908 rose and 1,148 fell, while 100 were unchanged.
Source : Bloomberg
