Asian markets were mixed in late morning trade on Tuesday, but Tokyo eased on profit-taking and following an uptick in the yen after Japan’s finance minister said the central bank’s independence was safe for now.
With US markets closed for the Presidents’ Day public holiday, there were no drivers from New York
Tokyo, which surged more than two per cent Monday, fell 0.21 per cent, while Hong Kong was up 0.10 per cent, Sydney added 0.21 per cent, Seoul was 0.35 per cent higher and Shanghai slipped 0.30 per cent.
The yen rose after Finance Minister Taro Aso’s comments on the central bank took the edge off premier Shinzo Abe’s warning Monday that he would consider changing the law to take control of the Bank of Japan if it could not achieve a new two per cent inflation target.
“We are not thinking about a law change at the moment,” Aso said at a regular news conference Tuesday.
Abe’s remarks had added to selling pressure on the yen, which was already weakened by the Group of 20’s decision not to label Tokyo a currency manipulator over its recent monetary easing policy.