Asia stocks muted; Tokyo rises as yen extends fall

HONG KONG (AP) — Japanese stocks pushed higher on Thursday as the yen sank further against the dollar while other Asian benchmarks struggled for direction after a mixed close on Wall Street.

KEEPING SCORE: Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.4 percent to 15,966.71, underpinned by the weakening yen which boosts earnings of exporting companies. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.4 percent to 2,041.60. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 0.2 percent to 24,602.00 and the Shanghai Composite Index in mainland China gained 0.2 percent to 2,31626. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.3 percent to 5,531.