Seoul Gazette - Stocks mostly higher before US-Russia summit

Wall Street finished little changed on Thursday as wholesale inflation data tempered optimism about the US Federal Reserve cutting interest rates. US Treasuries edged up.

A quarter-point cut is still expected but a larger half-point rate cut is likely "off the table", said Jack Ablin of Cresset Capital Management.

Japan's economy grew 0.3 percent in the three months to June, while output for the previous period was revised upwards, averting a recession for the world's number four economy.

The expansion came despite tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump on Japanese imports, including on cars -- an industry accounting for eight percent of Japanese jobs.

Tokyo's Nikkei, which hit new records this week, was up 1.7 percent on Friday while Shanghai, Seoul and Sydney also moved higher.

In Europe, London, Paris and Frankfurt all saw early gains.

But Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell for the second day after Chinese retail sales and industrial production grew more slowly than expected last month.

A long-term crisis in China's real estate sector and high youth unemployment have been weighing on consumer sentiment for several years.

The situation has worsened with the heightened turmoil sparked by Trump's trade war, with the two sides recently extending a truce.

Oil prices dipped, reversing gains on Thursday ahead of Trump's Alaska summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin on ending the Ukraine war.

"I am president, and he's not going to mess around with me," Trump said.

Oil traders are worried "that if the meeting doesn't go well, we'll see stronger sanctions on Russian oil thereby depriving the world of or making it... difficult for this oil to get to the market", said Stephen Schork of the Schork Group.

- Key figures at around 0700 GMT -

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.7 percent at 43,378.31 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.0 percent at 25,264.47

Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.8 percent at 3,696.77

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.4 percent at 9,217.92

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.677 from $1.1657 on Thursday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3555 from $1.3535

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 147.07 yen from 147.76

Euro/pound: UP at 86.14 pence from 86.05 pence

West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.7 percent at $63.51 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.6 percent at $66.44 per barrel

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E.Ma--SG