Stock market today: Asian shares mixed after AI hopes nudge Wall St to records. BOJ stands pat

Asian shares are mixed after Wall Street’s continued frenzy around artificial-intelligence technology nudged indexes on Wall Street to more records. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose after the Bank of Japan kept its monetary policy intact, though it say it intends to begin cutting back on its government bond purchases. Shares rose in South Korea but fell in Australia and China. On Thursday, most U.S. stocks fell, but hopes for coming cuts to interest rates helped push the S&P 500 0.2% higher, topping its record set the day before. The Nasdaq composite climbed 0.3% from its own record. The Dow fell 0.2%.