Asian shares skidded Friday following a retreat on Wall Street driven by concerns over banks' loan portfolios. US futures and oil prices also fell, while the price of gold climbed to over $4,383 an ounce as Washington and Beijing swapped harsh words over trade. Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 1.3% to 47,646.31, tracking US losses. Uncertainty over the choice of a new prime minister has also weighed on investor sentiment. Conservative lawmaker Sanae Takaichi was elected to head the ruling Liberal Democratic Party but last week's collapse of its coalition with the Buddhist-backed Komeito cast doubt over whether she would garner enough support in the lower house of parliament to prevail in a vote expected next week. Takaichi has led efforts to form a new alliance with the Osaka-based Japan Innovation Party, which would improve her chances of becoming Japan's first female prime minister. In Chinese markets, shares fell as trade tensions with Washington intensified. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index
Powell left the door open to further rate cuts on Tuesday and said the end of the central bank's long-running effort to shrink the size of its holdings may be coming into view
Wall Street's main indexes ended as much as 2.2 per cent higher on Monday, led by chipmakers, after Trump struck a more conciliatory tone about US-China trade tensions
A holiday in Japan and the United States made for choppy early trading and political uncertainty still shrouded Japanese and European assets
SINGAPORE (Reuters) -Asian stocks limped towards the end of the week on a shaky footing on Friday as declines on Wall Street lingered into early trading, while commodity markets took a breather after their recent charge higher. Regional markets remain on track for one of their best years in a decade, firmly outstripping gains for U.S. counterparts as President Donald Trump's package of economic policies and tariffs prompts a surge of orders across the region to meet booming demand for AI-linked technology hardware. The U.S. trading session marked the point where a number of "well-subscribed, high-momentum trades" including gold, silver, crypto, and much of the S&P 500 "finally showed signs of exhaustion," said Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone Group Ltd in Melbourne. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fluctuated between gains and losses, last down 0.2% as its gains for the week hung in the balance, after U.S. stocks ended the previous .
Stocks in Taiwan climbed 1.2 per cent to a fresh record, while MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan firmed 0.3 per cent
Shares were mostly lower in Asia on Wednesday after US stocks sank to their first loss in eight days, losing momentum after the price of gold topped $4,000 per ounce for the first time. The price of gold was up $25.40 at $4,029.60 an ounce. US futures and oil prices also advanced. The Japanese yen fell sharply against the dollar on expectations that Sanae Takaichi, the conservative lawmaker likely to become the next prime minister, will push to keep interest rates low. The dollar rose to 152.53 yen from 151.90 yen, while the euro slipped to $1.1621 from $1.1659. Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei 225 edged 0.1% higher to 48,002.18. Takaichi, who the ruling Liberal Democrats chose as their leader last weekend, is expected to increase spending and to advocate for easier credit, possibly slowing efforts by the Bank of Japan to raise its key interest rate. It has remained near zero for years, even as inflation has exceeded its target of about 2%, outpacing wage increases. While the economic c
Asian markets were taking cues from Wall Street, where all three major indexes closed at record highs buoyed by technology stocks as investor enthusiasm for all things AI remains unchallenged
Taiwan's tech-heavy bourse jumped 1.5 per cent, while South Korea's KOSPI shot up 2.8 per cent after chip heavyweights Samsung and Hynix inked partnerships to supply OpenAI data centres
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.5 per cent in early trading, poised for a 5.6 per cent gain this month that would be the best in a year
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan firmed 0.4 per cent, to be up almost 4 per cent for the month
Shares of pharmaceutical companies across Asia tumbled in the aftermath, with Japan's Topix pharmaceutical index last down 1.2 per cent, while Hong Kong-listed innovative drug index fell 2 per cent
Oil prices slipped, after surging over 2 per cent overnight to seven-week peaks as a surprise drop in US crude inventories added to supply worries
SINGAPORE (Reuters) -Stocks began the day on the back foot on Wednesday in Asia after declines on Wall Street overnight following comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell that gave little indication about the future path of interest rates. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slid 0.2% in early trade, after U.S. stocks ended the previous session lower. The S&P 500 was down 0.6%, marking its biggest one-day loss in three weeks.
The rush into tech has been a boon for chip sectors in many Asian markets, with South Korean stocks up 0.2 per cent, having surged almost 9 per cent this month
US stock futures eased in early trading with the S&P futures down 0.1 per cent
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.3 per cent on Friday but is still set for a weekly rise of 0.5 per cent, hovering not far from its four-year tops
Asian shares, led by tech stocks, were mostly higher Thursday after Wall Street indexes churned between gains and losses but ultimately remained near their record levels following the Federal Reserve's decision to cut its main interest rate. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 1.3 per cent to 45,365.98, with tech-related stocks including Disco, Tokyo Electron and SoftBank among the gainers. The Bank of Japan started its two-day policy meeting, with rates expected to be left unchanged. South Korea's Kospi added nearly 1.3 per cent to 3,455.98, with chipmakers SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics among advancers. The Chinese markets were mixed. Hong Kong's Hang Seng slipped 0.2 per cent to 26,856.02, while the Shanghai Composite index added nearly 0.5 per cent to 3,893.95 on optimism over trade negotiations with the US and a potential TikTok agreement. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.5 per cent to 8,778.60 with data released Thursday showing the jobless rate was unchanged at 4.2 per cent in ...
Expectations of imminent Fed rate cuts have kept the market mood buoyant over the past few sessions and sent stocks scaling new highs
Asian shares were mostly higher Monday, after Wall Street finished the previous week near their record levels. Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 0.4 per cent to 26,505.18. The Shanghai Composite edged up 0.2 per cent to 3,878.57. Worries are simmering about China's economy, as analysts say the data for August aren't strong enough to reflect ongoing dynamic growth, especially given the damage from US President Donald Trump's tariff policies. China's retail sales rose 3.4 per cent, and factory output was up 5.2 per cent. The underlying flow is shifting. For years, Beijing leaned on exports as the carry trade that kept growth rolling even as property cracked. But with Trump's tariffs slicing through supply chains, that leg of the trade is gone, said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.3 per cent to 8,836.50, while South Korea's Kospi gained 0.4 per cent to 3,409.94. Stock trading was closed Monday for a national holiday in Japan. Wall ...