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TOKYO – Asian shares were mixed Friday as markets struggled to find direction despite encouraging news about the U.S. economy.

Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average slipped 0.1 percent to 10,300.86 amid concerns the market may have risen too far recently. The Nikkei has gained about 5 percent over the last month.

The Shanghai Composite index was down 0.2 percent to 2,891.83 and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.2 percent to 4,774.7.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index added 0.2 percent to 22,711.43 and South Korea's Kospi rose 0.7 percent to 2,023.96. Benchmarks in Taiwan, Singapore and New Zealand also advanced.

In Tokyo, shares of Sharp Corp. rose 2.9 percent. The Nikkei financial daily reported before the market opened that the company plans to open a new plant to build LCD panels for smartphones, mainly for Apple's iPhone.

In Australia, miners fell on lackluster metals prices. BHP Billiton Ltd. lost 0.5 percent, while rival Rio Tinto Ltd. was down more than 1 percent.

In New York Thursday, a small drop in unemployment claims helped push stocks higher. The Dow Jones industrial average and the Standard & Poor's 500 index closed at their highest levels of the year.

The Labor Department said first-time claims for unemployment benefits fell last week to 420,000, the third drop in four weeks.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 41.78, or 0.4 percent, to 11,499.25. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 7.64, or 0.6 percent, to 1,242.87. The Nasdaq composite rose 20.09, or 0.8, to 2,637.31.

In currencies, the dollar fell to 83.88 yen from 83.92 yen late Thursday. The euro rose to $1.3285 from $1.3243.

Benchmark oil for January delivery was up 52 cents at $88.22 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract lost 92 cents to settle at $87.70 on Thursday.

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