Asian stock markets mixed

Asia-Pacific markets were mixed as expectations of cooling U.S. inflation boosted investor confidence in the region. A University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey released on Friday showed the one-year inflation outlook fell to 4%, the weakest since April 2021. That followed a December CPI report that showed prices down 0.1% from a month earlier, raising hopes the Fed could soon slow interest rate hikes. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.9%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1% and the Topix lost 0.61%. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.2% and the Kodaq gained 0.62%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was flat, while the Shanghai Composite rose 0.43% and the Shenzhen Component rose 0.66%. Over the weekend, China reported an increase of nearly 60,000 Covid deaths since lifting restrictions last month. The announcement came after the World Health Organization criticized China for allegedly underreporting deaths. On Sunday, the high-speed railway connecting mainland China and Hong Kong reopened for the first time in three years.