Asian shares press higher after Wall St record

BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets were mostly higher Friday after Wall Street hit a record and Japanese inflation eased.

Market benchmarks in Shanghai, Tokyo and Sydney advanced. Hong Kong declined.

Wall Street's benchmark S&P 500 index advanced 0.3%, putting it on track for a weekly gain.

Investors are shifting focus from corporate earnings to the longer-term outlook for global economies and whether central banks might feel pressure to cool rising prices by rolling back stimulus faster than planned.

Inflation is “currently the main focal area for the markets,” Fawad Razaqzada of ThinkMarkets said in a report.

On Friday, Japan's government reported October consumer inflation eased to 0.1% over a year earlier from the previous month's 0.2%.

The Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.1% to 3,558.87 and the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo gained 0.5% to 29,745.87. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong sank 1.3% to 24,982.55.

The Kospi in Seoul advanced 0.8% to 2,970.96 and Sydney's S&P-ASX 200 added 0.2% to 7,396.50.

Indian markets were closed for a holiday. New Zealand, Singapore and Bangkok declined while Jakarta gained.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 rose to 4,704.54 while the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.2% to 35,870.95. The Nasdaq composite gained 0.5% to 15,993.71.

Nvidia Corp. jumped 8.3% after the maker of graphics chips for gaming and artificial intelligence reported strong results. Other chipmakers also gained ground. Advanced Micro Devices Inc. rose 2.4% and Micron Technology Inc. rose 2.1%.

Macy’s Inc. surged 21.2% after the department store chain beat profit forecasts.

Two-thirds of companies in the S&P 500 fell. Gains by big technology companies and retailers offset losses in other sectors as investors sized up...