Asian Shares Mostly Lower

HONG KONG--Japanese stocks fell Friday as investors digested domestic inflation data after the latest Russia-Ukraine tensions pushed the U.S. market lower overnight.

The Nikkei Stock Average, which has rallied since May, was down 0.4%, as data showed Japanese prices rising briskly in July, suggesting that the country's economic recovery remains intact despite the recent contraction in growth.

The government reported the consumer-price index rose 1.3% on a year-to-year basis in July, excluding a sales-tax increase that took effect in April, and matching the on-year rise in June. The measure is closely watched to see how far inflation is from hitting the Bank of Japan's 2% target, key for determining how successful Prime Ministry Shinzo Abe's economic policies have been.

"Unless major shocks occur or the economy falls into a recession, it would be tough to breach the 1.0% mark in a short span of time," said Akiyoshi Takumori, chief economist at SumitomoMitsui Asset Management. "On the other hand, getting close to 2.0% also looks difficult."

The dollar changed hands recently at Yen103.73, compared with Yen103.72 late Thursday in New York.

Australia's S&P ASX 200 wavered ahead of the U.S. Labor Day weekend and amid a continued slide in iron-ore prices. Spot iron ore fell 1% to a fresh two-year low at US$87.30.

In the U.S., the S&P 500 fell 0.2% after Ukraine accused Russia of invading its territory, though U.S. equities were supported by an upward revision in U.S. gross domestic product data.

Reporting season wraps up Friday. Australian retailer Woolworths was up 2%, after earnings came in within expectations, despite sales growth in Australian food and liquor falling 2.5% in the fourth quarter.

Tatsuo Ito and Bradford Frischkorn contributed to this article.

Write to Chao Deng at [e-mail]

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