A-share tourism and hotel sector rose against the market trend; BTG Hotels jumped nearly 7%, with Three Gorges Tourism, Jinjiang Hotels, Dalian Shengya, Tongqing Lou and Xi'an Catering also higher.

As widely expected, the Bank of Japan left its policy rate unchanged at 1.25% in October, keeping the door open to further increases in coming months. The BOJ was the last of three major central banks this week to pause; the Federal Reserve and ECB also held after the three jointly raised rates last month. Consecutive BOJ hikes are unprecedented this century and could stoke market volatility; Japan's benchmark rate is at a 31-year high but remains below other G7 peers. Investors are focused on Governor Ueda's press conference at about 15:30 JST for signals on a possible December hike and the likely terminal level of the tightening cycle.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps deputy commander said the Strait of Hormuz remains closed and is controlled by Islamic fighters. He warned it will continue to be blocked until Iran's conditions are satisfied, adding that Iranians are battle-hardened and have forced enemies to seek ceasefires.