Asian stocks ended the week strongly, following Wall Street’s gains as investors priced-in further US Federal Reserve rate cuts.
Investor sentiment in the Asia-Pacific region was lifted by a combination of rising US unemployment claims, inflation figures that were aligned to expectations and eased tariff worries.
The rally was also boosted by lower bond yields, and the optimism surrounding artificial intelligence growth earnings.
Divergence between stocks in China and Hong Kong
China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.12 percent, to 3,870.60. This is a pause after recent gains.
Mexico’s proposal to impose a 50% import tax on Chinese or Asian cars, in order to safeguard local jobs, led the pressure.
China’s Ministry of Commerce replied, stating that “We hope Mexico is extremely cautious and will think twice before acting.”
Hong Kong stocks, on the other hand, surged and had their best weekly performance for six months.
The Hang Seng Index closed at 26,388.16, an increase of 3.8 percent in the past week. This is its highest closing since August 2021.
Hang Seng Tech Index increased by 1.7 percent.
Alibaba Group Holding climbed 5.4 percent, to HK$151.10; Baidu advanced 8.1 per cent to HK$115.10 following reports that both companies were using in-house chip technology to run their AI models.
Tencent Holdings increased by 2.2 percent while Pop Mart International Group gained 1.2 percent.
Japan’s Nikkei reaches record highs
The Japanese stock markets rose after US Treasury Sec. Scott Bessent reaffirmed, and Japanese Finance Minster Katsunobu Kato confirmed that neither their policies nor those of the other would target currency values.
Nikkei rose 0.89 percent, to 44 768.12, setting a new record.
Tokyo Electron and Advantest, both chip-related companies, soared 5.5 percent each.
SoftBank’s gains of 1.82 per cent continue the recent upward trend following Oracle’s positive guidance regarding artificial intelligence in relation to Stargate, its $500 billion Stargate project.
Regional markets
South Korean shares continued to rise, reaching record highs on a third day in a row.
The Kospi rose by 1.54 percent, to 3,395.54, making it the ninth session in a row of gains.
Stocks in semiconductors were the biggest drivers, Samsung Electronics gaining 2.7 percent while SK Hynix soared 7 percent.
SK Square, a semiconductor and IT-focused investment company, grew by 8.4 percent.
Australian shares ended higher on Friday, with financial and resource companies leading the way, while falling oil prices affected the energy sector. Woodside Energy fell 3.4 percent, and Santos dropped 2.2 percent.
All Ordinaries, the broadest index of all stocks, gained 0.63 per cent to 9,128.70. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 increased by 0.68 per cent to 8,864.90.
The Nifty closed above 25,100 on the 12th of September, with Indian stock benchmarks closing higher.
The Sensex rose 355.97, or 0.44% to settle at 81.904.70. Meanwhile, the Nifty gained 108.50, or 0.43% to finish at 25,114.
The ICD published this article: Asian stocks finish week strongly as Nikkei and Kospi reach record highs.
