Investing.com - Asian shares were mixed on Friday in holiday-thinned trade with many markets shut for Good Friday, including the U.S.
The Nikkei 225 rose 0.53%, while the Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.05%. The yuan fell and is set for a fifth consecutive decline against the dollar Friday after the People's Bank of China again set a weaker fixing at 6.5223 compared with 6.5150 - the weakest since early this month.
In Japan, national core CPI was flat year-on-year in February, missing expectations for a 0.1% gain, while national CPI gained a more than expected 0.3%.
The core consumer price index - excluding volatile perishables - has held flat for two months in a row after rising 0.1% in the previous two months.
Inflation has failed to pick up even at a gradual pace expected by the Bank of Japan as energy and commodity prices remain weak and average wage growth is flat. Government and BoJ officials are still counting on a tightening labor supply and a modest economic recovery to push up consumer prices.
Also in Japan, the corporate services price index rose 0.2% year-on-year in February, compared to a 0.3% gain the previous month.
Overnight, U.S. stocks were mixed after the close on Thursday, as gains in the Telecoms, Oil & Gas and Utilities sectors led shares higher while losses in the Financials, Consumer Goods and Healthcare sectors led shares lower.
At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.08%, while the S&P 500 index declined 0.04%, and the NASDAQ Composite index added 0.10%.