Asian shares are mixed as markets shrug off a likely US government shutdown

Shares were mixed in Asia on Wednesday, with Chinese markets closed for a weeklong holiday, as a U.S. government shutdown loomed.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index shed 1.2% to 44,411.26 after the Bank of Japan reported a slight improvement in business sentiment among major manufacturers.

The BOJ’s quarterly tankan adds to the likelihood the central bank will raise its key interest rate soon, to counter inflation that has topped its target range of about 2% for some time.

Political uncertainty is also looming over Japan’s markets, with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party due to chose a new leader and prime minister later this week to replace embattled Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.

Although markets and offices in mainland China are closed Oct. 1-8 for the National Day holiday, China’s central bank said it plans a 1.1 trillion yuan ($160 billion) reverse repo operation on Oct. 9, to increase the amount of cash in circulation and stimulate consumer spending and business investment.

Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.8% to 3,450.62, while Taiwan’s Taiex added 1.3% on heavy buying of semiconductor-related shares.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.4% to 8,812.90.

Markets appeared to be taking a potential shutdown of the U.S. government in stride ahead of a midnight U.S. Eastern time deadline. Past U.S. government shutdowns have had a limited impact on the economy and stock market, and many investors expect something similar this time around.

Many economists and professional investors expect something similar this time around.

The S&P 500 rose 0.4% to 6,688.46 to close out its fifth straight winning month after setting a record last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.2%, to set its own all-time high at 46,397.89.

The Nasdaq composite ticked 0.3% higher to 22,660.01.

This shutdown could be different, with the White House prone to push for large-scale firings of federal workers.

The broad stock market has been on a nearly relentless run since hitting a low in April on expectations that President Donald Trump’s tariffs won’t derail global trade and that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates several times to boost the slowing job market.

Treasury yields wavered in the bond market but ultimately held relatively steady following mixed reports on the U.S. economy. One said consumers are feeling less confident than economists expected, with many respondents in the Conference Board’s survey pointing to the job market and to inflation that has remained higher than anyone would like.

A second report suggested the job market may be remaining in its “low-hire, low-fire” state. U.S. employers were advertising roughly the same number of job openings at the end of August as the month before. The hope on Wall Street had been for a number that’s neither too high nor too low, one balanced enough to keep the Fed on track to continue cutting interest rates.

The Fed just delivered its first cut of the year, and officials have penciled in more to give the job market a boost.

When Wall Street will get the next data reports on the job market is uncertain, since a government shutdown would cause delays for several important reports, including Friday’s on how many jobs U.S. employers created and destroyed in September.

The Department of Labor has said that the Bureau of Labor Statistics will completely cease operations if there’s a lapse. The agency already was strained by Trump’s firing of Erika McEntarfer as BLS commissioner on Aug. 1 after the July jobs report showed a rapid slowdown in hiring, with job gains in May and June revised much lower than initially estimated.

Late Tuesday, the White House was withdrawing the nomination of E.J. Antoni to lead the bureau, according to an AP source who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a White House action that hadn’t been publicly announced.

Oil-related companies weighed on the market as the price of crude fell again as traders see too much oil washing around the world. Baker Hughes sank 3.6%, and Schlumberger fell 2.1%.

Early Wednesday, U.S. benchmark crude oil was up 11 cents at $62.48 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, gained 12 cents to $66.15 per barrel.

The U.S. dollar rose to 147.98 Japanese yen from 147.94 yen. The euro inched up to $1.1738 from $1.1734.

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AP Business Writers Stan Choe and Matt Ott contributed.