06:55 AM EDT, 08/29/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Asian stock markets churned on Thursday, following the cool reaction of Wall Street to the late Wednesday earnings release of US-based AI-chipmaking giant Nvidia (NVDA).

Hong Kong gained on strong earnings reports, Tokyo was flat and Shanghai lost ground. Other regional exchanges were mixed and muted, with tech-centric Seoul and Taiwan stepping back.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 opened lower after Nvidia's report but rose to the close, finishing essentially even as the Japanese currency, the yen, traded evenly against the US dollar.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 9.23 to 38,362.53 as gaining issues outnumbered losers 115 to 109.

Leading the upside was heavy equipment maker IHI, up 3.2%, while electric motor manufacturer Nidec lost 3.3%.

In economic news, in its August report, the Cabinet Office described Japan's economy as "recovering at a moderate pace, although it appears to be pausing in part," considered a modest positive change from its July description.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index opened lower but gained through the afternoon, as traders bought into battered tech and property issues.

The broad gauge Hang Seng rose 93.87 to 17,786.32, as gaining issues outnumbered losers 52 to 27. The Hang Seng TECH Index gained 0.5% on the day, while the Mainland Properties Index rose 1.6%.

Leading the upside was online delivery service Meituan, gaining 12.6%, while Li Auto lost 9.8%, with both moves coming after earnings reports.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite fell 0.5% to 2,823.11.

In economic news, China's gross domestic product, or GDP, in 2024 will grow by 4.6%, rather than the 4.9% earlier forecast, the Swiss bank UBS estimated.

On the other regional exchanges, the S. Korean KOSPI fell 1%; the Taiwan TWSE declined 0.8%; the Australian ASX 200 declined 0.3%; the Singapore Straits Times Index rose 0.4%, and the Thai Set declined 0.6%. In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was up 0.4%.