Asian markets had a mixed end to the week as worries about U.S. inflation grew on the back of a persistently weak U.S. dollar. Japan closed lower but South Korea finished at a seven-week high despite spending most of the session in flat territory.
South Korea's KOSPI rose for a third consecutive session to post a new seven-week closing high as expectations for solid third-quarter earnings sent blue chips such as Hyundai Heavy and POSCO to record highs.
Asian exporters were hit by the weak dollar, which tends to hurt their overseas earnings and erode their export competitiveness. Investors sold exporters such as Samsung Electronics,Honda Motor, Canon and Sony on the back of renewed U.S. worries.
Tokyo's Nikkei 225 Average finished weaker, hurt by selling of exporters on a stronger yen against the dollar. But the downside was solid, braced by steel company shares, which were bought on expectations of good earnings results next month. Investors were also reluctant to take out new positions ahead of a three-day weekend in Japan and U.S. data due next week that will be watched for clues on the health of the economy.