Japan’s Nikkei 225 led losses in Asia on Friday, falling more than 3%, while the broad based Topix fell 2.25%.
On Friday, the country released March inflation data, with the headline inflation rate coming in at 2.7%, down from the 2.8% seen in February.
The core inflation rate — which strips out fresh food prices — stood at 2.6%, in line with expectations from economists polled by Reuters.
Traders will also be watching chip stocks, after Taiwanese chip giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp beat first quarter revenue and profit expectations on Thursday.
Most other major Asian markets also declined.
South Korea’s Kospi was 2.32% lower after leading gains in Asia on Thursday, while the small-cap Kosdaq dropped 2.18%
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 was 1.48% lower.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was down 1.08%, while the mainland Chinese CSI 300 slipped 0.47%.
Overnight on Wall Street, all three major indexes ended mixed, with the S&P 500 posting five straight days of losses, its longest losing streak since last October. The broad index lost 0.22%, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.52%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.06%, closing just above its flatline for 2024.
— CNBC’s Brian Evans and Alex Harring contributed to this report.
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