06:38 AM EDT, 07/31/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Asian stock markets were choppy on Thursday as traders weighed central bank decisions, economic reports from Beijing, and the uncertain outlook for China-US trade.

Tokyo gained, while Hong Kong and Shanghai finished in the red. Other regional exchanges were mixed on the downside.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 opened evenly but rose to the close after the Bank of Japan held its key policy interest rate unchanged at 0.50% for the third-straight policy session. A softer yen boosted export issues.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 415.12 to 41,069.82, as gaining issues outnumbered losers 178 to 46.

Leading the upside was delivery service Yamato, up 12.8% after reporting earnings, while Sumitomo Metal Mining declined 3.2%.

In economic news, Japan's retail sales in June rose 2% on the year, and a seasonally adjusted 0.1% from May, reported the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI).

Additionally, Japan's industrial production rose 1.7% in June from May, and 4% on the year, reported METI.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index closed down 1.6% on soft economic reports from Beijing, and after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady on Wednesday.

Investors also awaited clarity on China-US trade relations and a tariff schedule for Chinese imports.

The broad gauge Hang Seng fell 403.60 to 24,773.33, as losing issues outnumbered gainers 74 to 10. The Hang Seng TECH Index lost 0.7% on the day, while the Mainland Properties Index fell 4.4%.

Leading the upside was online service company Kuaishou Technology, gaining 6.3%, while real estate concern Longfor declined 6.2%.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite fell 1.2% to 3,573.21.

In economic news, China's manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) declined to 49.3 in July, down from 49.7 in June, and slipping further below the 50-mark that separates growth from contraction, reported the National Bureau of Statistics.

China's non-manufacturing PMI logged at 50.1 in July, down from 50.5 in June, according to the NBS.

On the other regional exchanges, the S. Korean KOSPI fell 0.3%; the Taiwan TWSE rose 0.3%; the Australian ASX 200 declined 0.1%; the Singapore Straits Times Index fell 1.1%, and the Thai Set declined 0.1%. In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was down 0.4%