In Asian Equity Markets mainland Chinese markets were lower in early trade. The Shanghai composite declined more than 0.2 percent. The Shenzhen composite traded 0.13 percent lower. The Nikkei 225 in Japan fell 0.34 percent in morning trade while the Topix declined 0.33 percent as shares of robot maker Fanuc fell around 0.7 percent. South Korea’s Kospi also shed 0.39 percent, as chip-maker SK Hynixsaw its stock declining more 1 percent. In Australia, the ASX 200 bucked the trend to trade higher at 0.51 percent in afternoon trade.

In Currency Markets higher U.S. bond yields underpinned the dollar on Friday, while its Australian counterpart steadied after its recent sharp slide on upbeat central bank comments and easing concerns about China’s ban on Australian coal imports. The euro was 0.05 percent higher at $1.1340 and on track to gain 0.4 percent on the week. The Australian dollar was up 0.1 percent at $0.7094 after sliding more than 1 percent to a 10-day low the previous day on fears a ban on the country’s coal by a Chinese port would hurt Australia’s already slowing economy.

In Commodities Markets oil prices fell on Friday after the United States reported its crude output hit a record 12 million barrels per day (bpd), undermining efforts by Middle East-dominated producer club OPEC to withhold supply and tighten global markets. International Brent crude futures were at $66.87 per barrel, down 20 cents, or 0.3 percent, from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures were at $56.84 per barrel, down 12 cents, or 0.2 percent, from their last settlement.

In US Equity Markets weak economic reports pressured U.S. stocks on Thursday after the market’s recent run of gains, and a drop in healthcare shares added to the bearish momentum. The S&P 500 lost 0.35 percent, to 2,774.88 and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.39 percent, to 7,459.71. The S&P healthcare index slid 0.9 percent, weighed down by Johnson & Johnson’s 0.7 percent fall. The healthcare giant said it received subpoenas from U.S. regulators related to litigation involving alleged asbestos contamination in its signature baby powder product line.

In Bond Markets Japanese government bond prices edged higher on Friday after the Bank of Japan conducted a regular debt-buying operation. The 10-year JGB yield fell half a basis point to minus 0.050 percent. The 20-year yield slipped 1 basis point to 0.390 percent, its lowest since November 2016. The BOJ on Friday offered to buy 660 billion yen of five- to 40-year JGBs. The central bank regularly purchases JGBs from the market as part of its yield curve-controlling scheme.