Asian shares were mixed on Thursday with Tokyo extending its gains following a record close on Wall Street in pre-holiday trade, while the dollar rose to a five-year high against the yen.
The dollar rose to 104.85 yen in early trade – its highest since October 2008 – before settling at 104.71 yen, compared with 104.39 yen Wednesday in Tokyo.
New York was closed for the Christmas holiday.
Tokyo closed up 1.03 per cent, or 164.45 points, at 16,174.44, the best finish since November 2007. Seoul slid 0.11 per cent, or 2.29 points, to 1,999.30 while Shanghai dropped 1.58 per cent, or 33.25 points, to 2,073.10.
Tokyo shares enjoyed a tailwind from the yen’s weakening on the back of continued monetary easing steps by the Bank of Japan, said Yoshihiro Okumura, general manager of research at Chibagin Asset Management.
Financial markets in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand were closed for a public holiday.
