Wall Street futures flat after record close, Asian shares set for weekly rise 

The Asian stock market was poised for a weekly gain on Friday amid optimism over potential further rate cuts globally, while Japan’s Nikkei slipped from record highs after the Bank of Japan signaled a gradual unwinding of its extensive stimulus measures.

S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures held steady following record closes on Wall Street overnight. The S&P 500, Dow, and Nasdaq all closed at record highs, boosted by stronger-than-expected jobless claims data and news that Nvidia will invest $5 billion in the struggling U.S. chipmaker Intel. Intel shares jumped 22.77 percent, while Nvidia rose 3.49 percent.

Meanwhile, European stocks kicked the session off strongly, with the EUROSTOXX 50 rising 1.62 percent and Germany’s DAX gaining 1.35 percent.

Nikkei falls following the Bank of Japan’s decisions

On Friday, the Bank of Japan kept short-term interest rates at 0.5 percent as expected, though two members voted for a hike. The central bank also announced plans to begin selling its extensive holdings of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and real estate investment trusts (REITs).

Data showed Japan’s core inflation eased to 2.7 percent year-on-year in August, the slowest pace in nine months, yet still above the 2 percent target. The unexpected dissent and asset sales surprised investors, prompting the Nikkei, which had touched a record high in early trading, to reverse course, falling 0.56 percent and trimming its weekly gain to less than 0.9 percent.

Attention now turns to Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda’s news conference, set for 6:30 GMT.

Read: Crude oil prices fall to $67.36 as demand fears outweigh Fed rate cut optimism

Asian shares set for weekly gains

Earlier in the week, central banks in the United States, Canada, and Norway cut interest rates, fueling expectations of further policy easing and boosting the outlook for the global economy, while the Bank of England kept rates unchanged.

In the Asian stock market,  South Korea’s KOSPI fell 0.63 percent on Friday but remained near record levels, rising 1.3 percent for the week and more than 7 percent over the past two weeks. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dipped 0.55 percent but was still poised for a weekly gain of 0.6 percent, trading close to four-year highs.

Friday also marked a “triple witching” day, with the simultaneous expiration of stock options, index options and stock index futures, contributing to heightened trading activity and potential volatility.

In the Chinese stock market, the CSI 300 Index inched up 0.31 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.20 percent ahead of an anticipated call later in the day between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

In commodity markets, oil prices fell amid concerns over U.S. fuel demand, with U.S. crude down 0.3 percent at $63.38 a barrel and Brent slipping 0.2 percent to $67.32. Meanwhile, spot gold rose 0.4 percent to $3,658 an ounce.