Asia Stocks Mostly Rise to end January

Asia markets mostly rose Friday after Wall Street rose overnight as investors assessed Big Tech earnings. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 climbed 58.52 points, or 0.2%, to 39,572.49. The Tokyo consumer price index, excluding fresh food, rose 2.5% year on year in January, compared with 2.4% in the previous month. The latest reading is in line with Reuters’ estimates.Japan’s unemployment rate for December fell to 2.4% from 2.5% in the previous month, missing Reuters estimates of 2.5%.Meanwhile, Japan’s retail sales for December climbed 3.7% from the previous year, while its industrial output figures for December grew at 0.3%, month on month, from the 2.2% drop in the month before.Australia’s producer price index rose 3.7% through the year to the December 2024 quarter, data released on Friday from the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed.In other marketsHong Kong, mainland China, and Taiwan markets were closed for Lunar New Year.In Singapore, the Straits Times index returned to trading with a gain of 54.75 points, or 1.4%, to 3,855.82In Korea, the Kospi index dipped 19.43 points, or 0.8%, to 2,517.37In New Zealand, the NZX 50 revived 66.63 points, or 0.5%, to 12,995.01.In Australia, the ASX 200 gained 38.6 points, or 0.5%, to 8,532.30