SYDNEY, NSW, Australia - Stocks in Asia were mixed on Friday as investors waited for U.S. Federal ReserveFederal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, scheduled for Friday morning local time.
Robert Cantwell, a portfolio manager at Upholdings, told CNBC on Friday that the 10 year Treasury yield went above 3 percent this week brought back volatility back into stocks and that the Fed is not doing enough to fight inflation.
It's an attractive moment to invest in equity. Multiples are down because of macro fears and underlying company performance is strong for the highest quality companies. That's the setup that every long-term investor looks for. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 advanced by 162.37 points or 0.57 percent to 28,641. The Australian All Ordinaries gained 53.90 points or 0.74 percent to 7,345. In New Zealand, the S&P NZX 50 fell 18.85 points or 0.16 percent to 11,608. The Hang Seng was trading down 165 points in Hong Kong at the time of writing.
The U.S. dollar was steady against the euro on foreign exchange markets Friday. The last time the EU traded at 0.9970 was around the Sydney close Friday. The Australian dollar was firm but off the day's highs of 0.6957. The Swiss franc went up to 0.9646.
The British pound fell to 1.1786. The Canadian dollar was a bit stronger at 1.2953. The New Zealand dollar was slightly changed at 0.6198. The Japanese yen dropped to 137.04.
Overnight on Wall Street, the Nasdaq Composite gained 207.14 points or 1.67 percent to 12,639. The Dow Jones industrials increased by 322.55 points or 0.98 percent to 33,291. The Standard and Poor's 500 went up 58.35 points or 1.41 percent to 4,199.