S&P ASX 200 up 0.73%, KOSPI up 0.14% (Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - Seoul, 15 Jul - Asian shares erased earlier losses and closed mixed in cautious trade.

Volumes were low as the markets were closed in Tokyo for a public holiday.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.23%, slipping from a more than two-year high after climbing for a fifth straight month in June, when it rose more than 3%, its best performance since February.

Helping support sentiment today, US stock futures pointed to a moderately higher open after Wall Street's main indexes came climbed near record highs on Friday after data showing that US inflation had fallen more than expected in June, rekindled hopes of an interest rate cut this year.

Back in the region, data showed today that China's gross domestic product grew less than expected in the second quarter as weak consumer spending and demand weighed.

China's GDP rose 4.7% year on year in the second quarter, compared with a rise of 5.3% in the first quarter, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). Economists surveyed by AFP were expecting a 5.3% rise.

June retail sales also missed estimates, rising 2% compared with the 3.3% growth forecast.

In Sydney the S&P ASX 200 closed up 0.73% at 8,017 points, while in Seoul the KOSPI closed down 1.20% at 2,856 points.

The Shanghai Composite index was up 0.16% at 2,975 points and the Hong Kong Hang Seng index was down 1.71% at 17,980 points. In Mumbai the Sensex index rose 0.28% to 80,747 points.

AAA-Ver

(RADIOCOR) 15-07-24 09:16:23 (0147) 5 NNNN