There was a slight upward trend for the Tokyo Stock Exchange's Nikkei 225 index after the initial trading on Friday, up 0.3 percent, while the broader Topix was around zero at lunchtime.
It was really sour for Nissan, whose stock plummeted around ten percent, after the car giant announced that they would lay off 9,000 employees and reduce production by a fifth.
On the Chinese stock exchanges, the mood is characterized by anticipation of what the Chinese government will come up with to support the economy and counter the tariff threats from the incoming American President Donald Trump. The announcement is expected to be made on Friday.
The composite indexes in Shanghai and Shenzhen were down 0.5 percent and 0.1 percent, respectively. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index was down 0.9 percent.
