Investing.com - Shares in Asia were mixed with Shanghai down after disappointing data from China on Friday, though major trading partner Australia saw a slight gain along with Tokyo.
The Nikkei 225 rose 0.78% and the S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.24%, while the Shanghai Composite declined 0.53%.
China reported fixed-asset investment for July rose 8.1%, below a pace of 8.8% seen year-on-year and industrial production gained 6.0%, also below an expected at 6.1% year-on-year gain, while retail sales increased 10.2% under the expected up 10.5% year-on-year rise seen.
Overnight, U.S. stocks were higher after the close on Thursday, as gains in the Oil & Gas, Consumer Services and Healthcare sectors led shares higher.
At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.64% to hit a new all time high, while the S&P 500 index added 0.47%, and the NASDAQ Composite index added 0.46%.