Asian markets closed mostly higher in the last day of trade before Christmas, tracking moderate gains made on Wall Street. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.16 percent, or 36.66 points, to close at 22,902.76, with gains seen in trading houses and most financials, while automakers and tech traded mixed. Share of Kobe Steel closed down 2.36 percent after it acknowledged that three senior executives knew about data falsification taking place at the company, Reuters said. The steelmaker, currently embroiled in a scandal involving tampering with product specifications, said its investigation into the matter would be completed near the end of February, Reuters added. Across the Korean Strait, the Kospi tacked on 0.44 percent to close at 2,440.54 as blue chips that had fallen in the last session clawed back gains. Samsung Electronics closed up 1.14 percent and Hyundai Motor rose 2 percent.

So-called THAAD-linked stocks that have been sensitive to developments in ties between China and South Korea pared losses after seeing steeper declines earlier in the session. Lotte Shopping ended the session flat, Hotel Shilla rose 2.1 percent and AmorePacific lost 0.5 percent on the day. Meanwhile, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 edged up by 0.15 percent to close at 6,069.7 on strength in the resources sectors. Major miners and oil-related plays rose in morning trade: Rio Tinto closed higher by 0.84 percent, Santos rose 0.76 percent and Mount Gibson Iron added 1.11 percent. Commodities prices had risen overnight on positive market sentiment. "The continued improvement in market sentiment should see [commodities] prices remain well-supported leading into the holiday period," Tom Kenny, senior economist at ANZ, said in a note. The advanced 0.32 percent by 3:01 p.m. HK/SIN, as tech shares led the index higher. Tencent was higher by 0.9 percent at that time. Among blue chip names, financial giant HSBC was up 0.38 percent. Real estate also rose, with China Vanke adding 3.49 percent and Evergrande gaining 1.23 percent late in the afternoon. Mainland markets closed mostly flat, with the closing lower by 0.08 percent at 3,297.36. The Shenzhen Composite lost 0.18 percent to finish at 1,901.56. Energy stocks were among the top performers on the day, while banks and financials recorded slight declines.

Euro slips after Catalonia votes

Meanwhile, the euro slid against the dollar after results from Catalonia's regional election pointed to a win for pro-independence parties. The election had been called after Spain's government sacked the regional parliament when the latter declared independence in October. Pro-independence parties are set to win a majority of the seats in the assembly, with most votes tallied so far. The common currency traded at $1.1851 at 2:33 p.m. HK/SIN, compared to levels around $1.1875 seen on Thursday.

US stocks gain — but bitcoin takes a tumble

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