Asian Equities Mixed, Ueda Before Parliament, Corp Earnings Mixed

Asian equities are mixed today, with markets showing caution ahead of Jerome Powell's upcoming speech at Jackson Hole. The yen strengthened as investors reacted to remarks from BOJ's Ueda as he speaks before parliament, contributing to mixed performance in Japanese stocks. Meanwhile, disappointing earnings from key Chinese tech firms added to the pressure, leading to declines in Hong Kong, while onshore equities are higher. Broader market sentiment was also weighed down by lingering concerns over global monetary policy direction, following hawkish rhetoric from central banks earlier in the month.

• Japanese equities traded mixed on Friday as investors remained cautious ahead of Jerome Powell's speech. The yen strengthened, supported by comments from BoJ's Ueda which added to market uncertainty. Earlier, Japanese inflation data exceeded expectations, further fueling speculation about the BoJ's policy direction. While some sectors, such as oil-related stocks, saw gains due to rising crude prices, overall market sentiment was subdued as traders awaited clearer signals on global monetary policy. The TOPIX is down 0.20%, banks are holding up ok at the moment with the Banks Index flat, while the Nikkei 225 is down 0.30%
• Hong Kong and Mainland China markets are mixed today with tech firms leading the losses, echoing the declines seen in their U.S. counterparts. In Hong Kong, significant sell-offs in major Chinese tech stocks like Baidu and NetEase weighed heavily on the market, despite Alibaba's announcement of upgrading its shares to primary status in the city. This move is expected to allow Alibaba to join a connect scheme with the mainland, potentially opening up access to more than 200 million Chinese investors and generating up to $19.5 billion, according to estimates. The HSI is down 0.40%, while CSI 300 is up by 0.57%.
• South Korean equities have pared losses to trade unchanged for the session, the weakness came on the back of soft US tech stocks as investors booked profits ahead of Jackson Hole tonight. The local currency also weakened against the USD, adding to the cautious sentiment in the market, currently the KOSPI & KOSDAQ are both unchanged.
• Taiwanese equities faced pressure as investors adopted a risk-off approach with tech stocks leading the decline. The market sentiment was further dampened by concerns over the global tech sector's outlook, particularly as key Taiwanese firms are closely linked to global supply chains. The Taiex is currently trading 0.30% lower, with TSMC down 0.40%
• Australian equities are trading lower, mirroring the negative sentiment from Wall Street's selloff on Thursday, with the ASX200 trading 0.10% lower. The Australian market saw a pullback after a strong rally, as investors braced for potential volatility ahead of Jerome Powell’s speech. In contrast, New Zealand's market managed to edge higher with the NZX50 up 0.80%, driven by an almost 10% jump from Fisher & Paykel after they raised earnings guidance.
• Elsewhere in Asia EM equities, Indonesia's JCI is 0.75% higher, Singapore's Strait Times is 0.15% higher, India's Nifty 50 is flat and Malaysia's KLCI is down 0.35%