Despite the dollar's slight weakness this week, the Japanese yen has remained fragile, trading at 156.95 per dollar in early Asian hours, not far from the 10-month low of 157.90 it touched last week
Japan's Nikkei tumbled 2 per cent on Friday, Australia's resources-heavy shares slid 1.4 per cent, while South Korea plunged almost 4 per cent
S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures teetered around flat in the Asia morning. Japan's Nikkei made an unsteady 0.4 per cent gain and South Korea's Kospi fell 0.8 per cent
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 1.8 per cent to its lowest level since mid-October
Japan's Nikkei tumbled 1.8 per cent on Friday, Australia's resources-heavy shares slid 1.5 per cent, while South Korea plunged 2.3 per cent
Asian shares traded mixed on Thursday after US stocks drifted near their records. US futures edged higher, while oil prices declined. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.2 per cent to 51,139.48 as investors took heart as the US government shutdown finally ended. President Donald Trump signed a government funding bill Wednesday night, ending a record 43-day shutdown that caused financial stress for federal workers who went without paychecks, stranded scores of travellers at airports and generated long lines at some food banks. The shutdown had blocked not just spending, but also delayed a raft of federal economic data, Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary, adding that for markets, the only line that matters is simple: the lights are coming back on. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 0.6 per cent to 26,766.71, while the Shanghai Composite index edged up 0.4 per cent to 4,016.24 as mainland stocks climbed ahead of updates on lending in China. Australia's S&P ASX 200 fell 1
Asian shares were mostly lower on Tuesday as the recent rebound fuelled by buying of technology shares lost steam. Markets showed little reaction to the latest step toward ending the US shutdown, after the Senate passed legislation to reopen the government. US futures were little changed and oil prices slipped. Shares have been bouncing on criticism that tech share prices have shot too high due to the mania for artificial intelligence, which some have likened to the 2000 dot-com bubble that ultimately burst. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 lost 0.5 per cent to 50,675.92. The US dollar climbed to 154.15 against the Japanese yen, from 154.14 yen, near its highest since February. Expectations that the government will push back its schedule for trimming Japan's huge national debt and boost spending have helped to weaken the yen. The euro inched up to USD 1.1563 from USD 1.1557. Chinese shares also declined. Hong Kong's benchmark Hang Seng index fell 0.2 per cent to 26,595.97 and the Shangh
Shutdown has taken a toll on the US economy, with federal workers from airports to law enforcement and the military going unpaid while the central bank flies blind with limited government reporting
Asia's tech sector has outpaced its US counterpart this year, fueled by cheaper valuations and the excitement sparked by China's AI breakthroughs, particularly that of DeepSeek
Shares retreated in Asia on Friday after losses for influential technology stocks pulled Wall Street benchmarks lower. US futures edged higher and oil prices advanced. Japan's Nikkei 225 index fell more than 2% early in the session and was trading 1.6% lower at 50,064.38. China reported that its exports contracted 1.1% in October, as shipments to the United States dropped by 25% from a year earlier. But economists expect Chinese exports to recover after US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping agreed last week to de-escalate the trade war between the two largest economies. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 0.9% to 26,247.36, while the Shanghai Composite index was nearly unchanged, at 4,007.45. South Korea's Kospi shed 2.2% to 3,937.22 and Taiwan's Taiex lost 0.7%. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 skidded 0.8% to 8,761.10. Technology industries have helped drive markets up and down all week. On Thursday, the S&P 500 fell 1.1% to 6,720.32 and the Dow Jones Industrial .
Data on Wednesday showed the US services sector activity increased to an eight-month high in October as new orders grew solidly
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.8 per cent, led by declines in South Korean shares with a loss of 4.1 per cent
Overnight, a rally in US tech shares buoyed both the US S&P 500 and Nasdaq, though futures pointed to declines of 0.3 per cent and 0.5 per cent, respectively
Gold prices fell, edging further away from the record peak it has been at most of last month, while oil prices rose after Opec+ decided to hold off production hikes
It stands out against other top stock performers that underscore the divide between US attempts to onshore tech production on one side, and China's push to bolster self reliance on the other side
Chinese stocks lagged after a dismal reading on China's factory activity in October weighed on sentiment
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury bond was last around a three-week high of 4.068 per cent, up 1 basis point compared with a previous close of 4.058 per cent
Also key for investors later in the day will be a highly anticipated rate decision from the Fed, where a 25-basis-point cut is almost fully priced in
Traders aren't chasing the rumour this time; they're watching, weighing, waiting for something real to sign, said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management
Asian shares rallied and US futures jumped Monday, with Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 topping 50,000 for the first time. Work on trade deals that might alleviate friction between the US, China and other major trading partners contributed to upbeat sentiment as US President Donald Trump visited Malaysia for a summit of Southeast Asian nations where he reached preliminary trade agreements with Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. A trade deal between the United States and China was drawing closer, officials from the world's two largest economies said Sunday as they reached an initial consensus for Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to try to finalise during a high-stakes meeting later in the week. This isn't just photo-op diplomacy. Behind the showmanship, Washington and Beijing's top trade lieutenants have quietly mapped out a framework that might, just might, keep the world's two largest economies from tearing up the field again, Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a