- England return to winning ways in Nations League, Austria thrash Norway
- UN chief says attacks on UNIFIL 'may constitute a war crime'
- Ravens outlast Commanders while Bucs batter Saints in NFL
- Dozens hurt in Israel as Hezbollah claims drone strike
- England deserve 'world class' coach: Carsley
- Burkina Faso win to become first qualifiers for 2025 AFCON
- AC Milan's Pulisic among five out for USA match in Mexico
- France's Amandine Henry retires from international football
- Centre-left set to win pro-Ukraine Lithuania's vote
- India's World Cup hopes in Pakistan hands after Australia defeat
- Zelensky says NKorea sending troops to Russian army
- England beat Finland to get back on track
- King and Lewis propel West Indies to T20 triumph over Sri Lanka
- Pre-Halloween 'Terrifier' lands atop North America box office
- 'I still plan to compete and play next season,' says Djokovic
- Harris, Trump seek advantage in knife-edge election battle
- Chepngetich shatters women's marathon world record in Chicago
- Kamindu and Asalanka power Sri Lanka to 179 against West Indies
- Chepngetich shatters women's marathon world record as Korir wins in Chicago
- Spain send injured Yamal home 'to prioritise player's health'
- In milestone, SpaceX 'catches' megarocket booster after test flight
- Iraq walks fine line with pro-Iran factions to avoid war
- Race four abandoned after New Zealand breeze into 3-0 lead in America's Cup
- West Indies win toss, put Sri Lanka in to bat in first T20
- Sudan rescuers say air strike killed 23 in Khartoum market
- Netanyahu tells UN to move Lebanon peacekeepers out of 'harm's way'
- Bangladeshi Hindus defy attack worries to celebrate festival
- Kiwis three up in America's Cup as Ineos pay for time penalty
- In a first, SpaceX 'catches' megarocket booster after test flight
- Dominant England crush Scotland at Women's T20 World Cup
- Dropped: The rise and fall of Pakistan batting maestro Babar Azam
- Israel fights Hezbollah on the ground, pounds Lebanon from the air
- Sabalenka outlasts local hero Zheng to win third Wuhan Open title
- Bangladeshi Hindus shrug off attack worries to celebrate festival
- Former Pakistan captain Azam dropped for second England Test
- 'Opportunist' Dupont dazzles on Toulouse return
- Australia replace injured Vlaeminck with Graham at Women's T20 World Cup
- Sinner wins Shanghai Masters to deny Djokovic 100th career title
- Ubisoft fears assassin's hit over falling sales
- Israel hits Lebanon from the air and fights Hezbollah on the ground
- China's Yin has 'goosebumps' as she romps to LPGA win in Shanghai
- Pakistan to re-use Multan pitch for second England Test
- Blair and King Charles hail Salmond's 'devotion' to Scotland
- Vietnam, China hold talks on calming South China Sea tensions
- SpaceX will try to 'catch' giant Starship rocket shortly before landing
- England captain Stokes in line for second Pakistan Test return
- Japan's former empress Michiko discharged after surgery: reports
- Japan's former empress Michiko discharged after surgey: reports
- Israel widens Lebanon strikes as troops fight Hezbollah along border
- Bowlers' graveyards: Pakistan's placid pitches under fresh fire
Asian markets mixed as rate hopes offset by China gaming move
Asian markets were mixed Friday as the euphoria over an expected flurry of US interest rate cuts next year was offset by a tech-led plunge in Hong Kong after China unveiled fresh plans to restrict online gaming.
Equities have been on an upward trajectory in recent weeks as a string of figures show inflation coming down and the jobs market softening, while the economy is easing but appears safe from recession.
The surge suffered a blip in the middle of the week as traders took a breather, with analysts saying the advance may have gone a little too fast, but they were back on their horse Friday following a strong run-up on Wall Street.
That came on the back of data showing that the US economy grew slightly less than first thought in the third quarter.
The readings were "in line with the narrative that a cooling economy will keep the Fed on track to cut rates in the not-too-distant future", Chris Larkin, at E*Trade from Morgan Stanley, said.
"That sentiment has played a big role in the market's recent surge."
Focus is now on the release of the closely watched personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, decision-makers' preferred gauge of inflation, which could be key for the Fed's meeting next month.
Bank officials sent markets racing last week when they held rates and released their "dot plot" forecast for rates suggesting they would cut several times next year, but observers said investors were confident that more than that are in store.
Traders are betting on about 150 basis points of reductions, according to Bloomberg News, twice as much as policymakers have indicated.
All three main indexes on Wall Street rose Thursday, with the Nasdaq and S&P 500 piling on more than one percent, and analysts said the fact that trades are still snapping up stocks when they were overbought was a good sign for the market outlook.
Asia built on the US lead in the morning but the news out of Beijing took the wind out of the sails.
Tokyo, Singapore, Wellington, Taipei, Manila, Mumbai and Jakarta all rose.
But Hong Kong reversed an early rally and sank more than one percent after China unveiled proposals that would put limits on recharging in-game wallets and abolish features meant to increase gameplay.
The news sent tech giant Tencent plunging more than 15 percent in Hong Kong -- wiping more than $50 billion off its valuation, Bloomberg reported -- while rival Netease was down more than 30 percent.
XD Inc sank around 20 percent, while there were also losses for Alibaba and Meituan.
Shanghai also fell, while Sydney, Seoul and Bangkok were marginally lower.
"This will deal a blow to the overwhelming majority of games in China, except those that sell copies," Zeng Xiaofeng, a vice president at Niko Partners, said.
"Companies will need to overhaul their monetisation models, including how they charge money from different tiers of players."
- Key figures around 0700 GMT -
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.1 percent at 33,169.05 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.5 percent at 16,369.38
Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.1 percent at 2,914.78 (close)
Dollar/yen: UP at 142.31 yen from 142.14 yen on Thursday
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1000 from $1.1013
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2700 from $1.2690
Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.61 pence from 86.76 pence
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.9 percent at $74.53 per barrel
Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.8 percent at $80.05 per barrel
New York - Dow: UP 0.9 percent at 37,404.35 (close)
London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.3 percent at 7,694.73 (close)
F.Schneider--AMWN