Investing.com - Shares in Asia were mixed on Friday with Tokyo down, but Australia gaining on room for continued easy policy as markets digested the Federal Reserve decision to hold rates steady.
The Nikkei 225 fell 1.38%, while the Shanghai Composite was volatile, up 0.40% after the break. The S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.76%.
It was also a busy day for central bank comments in the region.
Some Bank of Japan board members suggested that higher government spending is a key variable in lifting price expectations, according to the minutes of the August meeting released on Friday.
The minutes noted the certain job categories are commanding higher wages, but that the slowdown in China has weighed on exports and a drag on economic prospects. As well, the central bank said weak oil prices continue to have a strong effect on the inflation goal. In its most recent review, the BoJ kept policy steady and its asset buying program at ¥80 trillion annually.
Elsewhere, monetary policy is supporting economic growth and the weaker Australian dollar is helping, Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Glenn Stevens said on Friday.
"Monetary policy is seeking to support this transition, something it can do because inflation remains low. Very low interest rates, coupled with financial institutions wanting to lend, have played a part in the improvement in conditions in some sectors," Stevens said.
Stevens made the remarks in comments before the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics.
He added that China remains a question mark as its economy continues to moderate and the global economic outlook remains complex.
Overnight, U.S. stocks were mixed on Thursday amid wild gyrations in the final hours of the afternoon session, after the Federal Open Market Committee held short-term interest rates at its current near-zero level upon the completion of its two-day September meeting.
Citing the negative effects of global economic weakness on U.S. inflation, the FOMC voted to leave its benchmark Federal Funds Rate at its current level between zero and 0.25% on Thursday. Nearly a decade has passed since the U.S. central bank has last raised short-term rates.
"Recent global economic and financial developments may restrain economic activity somewhat and are likely to put further downward pressure on inflation in the near term," the FOMC said in a statement.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 65.21 or 0.39% on Thursday to close at 16,674.74. The Dow initially shot up 50 points after the release of the statement before quickly turning negative minutes later. It then rallied toward the end of the session after Fed chair Janet Yellen said
in a press conference that the majority of the FOMC is still in favor of a rate hike before the end of the year. At one point, the Dow rallied nearly 200 points, before falling back sharply again to close in negative
territory. The NASDAQ Composite index, though, ended Thursday's session up 4.71 or 0.10% to 4,893.95, amid solid gains among biotech stocks.
The S&P 500 Composite index, meanwhile, lost 5.11 or 0.26% to close at 1,990.20, as six of 10 sectors closed in the red.