Overshadowed number of Uncertainty, Asian Shares Mixed in Early Session

Asian stocks traded mixed early in the last trading session this week, amid uncertainty ahead of a Federal Reserve policy meeting next week crucial. Fed is expected to start to tighten policy as early as next week's meeting as a fundamental improvement in the US economy. But the shocking devaluation of the Yuan by the Chinese authorities last August has triggered fresh turmoil in global markets, which helped erode US rate hike expectations.

Had opened slightly higher, Japan's Nikkei 225 index should slip 0.3% as weak performance heavyweight components. SoftBank and Fanuc shares both fell more than 2%, while Toyota Motor fell 1.4%. While bargain hunting prop up the financial sector, following a sharp drop the previous day. Shares of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group rose respectively 0.6% and 0.2%, while Nomura Holdings has appreciated 1.3%.

In China, the Shanghai Composite index is able to return to positive territory after a negative opening. Focus on today's market players will likely be drawn to some of the economic data is scheduled for release at the weekend. Retail sales in China is predicted to be stable at 10.5% in August, while industrial output in August is likely to show a rise of 6.4% from 6.0% in the previous month. The positive sentiment in the mainland China markets helped the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong moved 0.6% higher.

While South Korean KOSPI index fell about 0.8% after the Bank of Korea decided to keep policy rates unchanged, in accordance with market expectations. Among the stocks that perform weak in the beginning of the session, the heavyweight component such as Posco, Kepco and Samsung Electronics observed to lose between 0.9% to 2.1%.