Australian shares finished lower on Friday, with the mining index seeing its biggest fall in two months, after the China's central bank unexpectedly raised its short-term interest rates. The S&P/ASX 200 index closed down 0.4 percent, or 23.834 points, to 5,621.6. The index lost 1.6 percent on the week.
The ASX metal & mining index fell 2.5 percent in heavy trading, with over 251 million shares changing hands, about 1.4 times the 30-day average volume. Mining giants BHP Billiton Ltd and Rio Tinto Ltd spearheaded the declines in the broader index, falling by more than 3 percent.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index edged up 0.6 percent, or 40.84 points, to 7,094.38. The index fell 0.6 percent on the week, snapping six weeks of gains. Materials and healthcare stocks led the gains, with Fletcher Building Ltd and Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corporation Ltd rising 1.8 percent and 2.3 percent, respectively.