Asia-Pacific markets set to trade mixed as inflation in Japan inches up

SINGAPORE — Futures in Asia-Pacific are set to trade mixed Friday as investors digest Japan's inflation data.

The Nikkei futures contract in Chicago was at 27,845 while its counterpart in Osaka was at 27,850. That compared against the Nikkei 225's last close at 27,803.

Official data released Friday showed that prices in Japan rose 2.2% in June compared with a year ago, in line with analyst expectations.

In Australia, SPI futures were at 6,689, lower than the S&P/ASX 200's last close at 6,794.3.

Overnight in the U.S., the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 1.36% to close at 12,059.61 as Tesla shares surged. The S&P 500 gained nearly 1% to end the session at 3,998.95, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 162.06 points, or 0.51%, to 32,036.90.

The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 106.910 after falling from last week's levels.

The Japanese yen traded at 137.12 per dollar, strengthening from recent levels above 138 against the greenback. The Australian dollar was at $0.6930, rising from below $0.6880.