Nikkei hits record high on Wall Street bounce, other Asian markets subdued

SYDNEY, March 1 (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei hit a fresh record high on Friday, buoyed by the bounce on Wall Street as a key U.S. inflation reading was in line with expectations, while markets elsewhere in Asia were more subdued on China’s still-uncertain economic outlook. The Nikkei index gained 1.8% to hit a fresh all-time high, extending a surge of 7.9% the previous month when it breached levels last seen in 1989. Australia’s resources-heavy shares also hit a record high and were last up 0.3% on the day. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan , however, fell 0.1%, weighed down by a 0.2% drop in Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index. The Asia index is set for a weekly…