Investing.com - Shares in Asia tread water on Friday with weekend data in China in focus and next week's Federal Reserve meeting on interest rates.
China will release retail sales and industrial production figures at the weekend.
The Shanghai Composite eased slightly by the break, while the Hang Seng index rose 0.78% and the S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.16%.
Overnight, U.S. stocks moved broadly higher on Thursday as import-export prices fell by their lowest annual percentage in six years, providing investors with further uncertainty on whether the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates next week.
On Thursday morning, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said U.S. import prices fell by 1.9% last month, extending previous losses of 0.9% in July. On a year-over-year basis, imported inflation has fallen by 11.4% -- its lowest amount since September, 2009. Export prices, meanwhile, declined 1.4% far below expectations for a 0.4% drop. Exports prices fell by 7% over the last 12 months, also its lowest level since 2009.
Next week at its September monetary policy meeting, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) could lift its benchmark Federal Funds Rate for the first time in nearly a decade. The rate, which banks use to lend to other institutions on overnight loans, has remained at its current level between zero and 0.25% since December, 2008. In recent months, Fed chair Janet Yellen has indicated that the FOMC will raise rates this year if the economy and labor markets exhibit continued improvement.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the NASDAQ Composite Index each reversed some of Wednesday's losses during Thursday's session, amid gains in biotech and energy stocks. The Dow still remained in correction territory in spite of adding 76.83 or 0.47% to 16,300.40, while the NASDAQ rose 39.72 or 0.84% to close at 4,796.25.
The S&P 500 Composite index, meanwhile, gained 10.25 or 0.53% to 1,952.29, as eight of 10 sectors closed in the green. Stocks in the Technology, Health Care and Energy industries led, while stocks in the Telecommunication and Utilities sectors lagged.