Live updates-China, India economic data

China’s consumer price index grew 0.1% in August from a year ago, marking the first time that the inflation rate was in positive territory since May.

The August figure was a reversal from the 0.3% fall in July, but still lower than the 0.2% growth expected by economists polled by Reuters.

Separately, the producer price index still fell 3% year on year, in line with expectations but a softer fall than the 4.4% recorded in July.

— Lim Hui Jie

Japan’s central bank has now entered “a phase of reducing monetary easing,” according to the country’s Yomiuri newspaper.

In an interview with the newspaper, Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said the bank will seek a “quiet exit” from its ultra-dovish monetary policy.

Ueda also said the end of the year could be a possible time to assess the trend of wage increases, a key factor in setting price increases. Average summer bonuses at major companies recovered to over 900,000 yen (about $6,140) for the first time in three years, Yomiuri said.

Should individuals and firms in Japan come to anticipate a sustained rise in prices, growth expectations would also spur consumption and investment, which could lead to higher interest rates, the newspaper wrote.

— Lim Hui Jie

Bullish sentiment among individual investors regarding the outlook for stocks over the next six months surged to 42% in the latest week, from 33.1% last week, and the first time the measure’s been above the historical average (37.5%) since early August, according to the latest American Association of Individual Investors survey.

Bearish sentiment sank to 29.6%, a four-week low, vs 34.5% last week. Neutral sentiment fell to a seven-week low of 28.2% from 32.4% last week.

Bullishness also climbed in the weekly Investors Intelligence poll of financial newsletter editors and advisors earlier this week, rising to 49.3% from 43.1% last week. Bearishness rose a touch, to 21.9% from 20.8%, while those in the correction camp narrowed to 28.8% from 36.1%.

Rising bullishness is a bad omen for contrarians who try and go against the investment crowd, as it can mean cash has already been deployed in the market and there’s less firepower on the sidelines to push prices higher.

— Scott Schnipper

Chinese stock markets have failed to perform in 2023.

Major China-focused indexes have lost money for investors over the past week, this month, the past three months, the past six months, and the past year. Only patient investors who entered the market five years ago would barely be in the black.

CNBC Pro screened for ETFs and found 10 that have gained value this year in spite of the odds, and with the potential to rise further. Subscribers can read more here.

— Ganesh Rao

Apple has a challenge ahead as investors remain downbeat about the iPhone-maker’s upcoming launch, according to JPMorgan.

Analyst Samik Chatterjee reiterated his overweight rating on the stock, but lowered his price target to $230. That still suggests substantial upside.

“We believe share price outperformance in the remainder of the year (particularly after a strong outperformance in 1H and underperformance between July and September) is dependent on beating what are now low investor expectations for the iPhone 15 launch,” Chatterjee wrote in the Friday note.

Apple’s shares edged up 1.2% on Friday after raking in losses earlier this week. CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Pia Singh