US officials said the indictment showed President Xi Jinping had not fulfilled his pledge to stop cybercrime, but China accused the US of "fabricating facts" and warned Washington to drop the prosecution. 'Irritable Powell syndrome'Japanese stocks again bore the brunt of Asian losses Friday, with the Nikkei falling further into bear market territory and regional shares on course for the worst week since October. Data Friday showed Japanese inflation in November falling to 0.9 percent, far below the Bank of Japan's two-percent target. "The Fed should come out and say, if need be, we can adjust the rate at which we undertake quantitative tightening. Investors are also awaiting later Friday the latest US personal income and spending data, along with a gauge of inflation.

Source: Philippine Star December 21, 2018 03:39 UTC