KELVIN CHAN, AP Business Writer
HONG KONG (AP) — The British pound jumped as Scotland voted to stay part of the United Kingdom while Japanese shares surged as the yen extended losses against the dollar. Other Asian benchmarks were subdued for lack of major economic data.
KEEPING SCORE: Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 jumped 1.6 percent to 16,330.67, the highest level since December, as the yen’s weakness made exports cheaper for overseas buyers and local stocks more affordable for foreign investors. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.5 percent to 2,056.83 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.4 percent to 24,267.86. The Shanghai Composite Index in mainland China slipped 0.1 percent to 2,313.31 and Sydney’s S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.3 percent to 5,432.90.
CURRENCIES: The yen is at its lowest in more than six years; its rapid decline against the dollar has been driven by expectations the Federal Reserve will raise rates while the Bank of Japan will maintain its stimulus program. The dollar strengthened to 109.23 yen, up 0.4 percent from 108.77 in late trading Thursday. The pound jumped after the ongoing vote count from an independence referendum showed that Scotland would remain a part of the United Kingdom. Sterling rose as much as 0.4 percent to $1.6509 from $1.6445 though later fell back to be largely unchanged.
SCOTLAND: With a lack of major economic data slated for release Friday in Asia, investors were monitoring results of the Scottish vote. There were fears for the U.K economy and its financial markets if Scotland voted for independence. But with most votes counted, the campaign against independence has won a clear victory.
ALI-BUSTER: The jumbo initial public offering by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group in New York will cap the week for investors. The company set its IPO price at $68 per share, near the top end of the marketing range, to value the company at nearly $168 billion. The stock starts trading later Friday under the symbol BABA.
WALL STREET: The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 0.6 percent to close Thursday at 17,265.99, the second day in a row the blue chip index has closed at a record. The S&P 500 gained 0.5 percent to 2,011.36 while the Nasdaq composite 0.7 percent to 4,593.43.
ENERGY: Benchmark crude oil slipped 11 cents to $92.96 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $1.35 to close at $93.07 a barrel on Thursday.