Asian Shares Mostly Higher; Seoul Stocks Decline On DeepSeek Concerns

Most Asian markets rose on Friday following encouraging earnings updates from Apple and Intel.

Seoul stocks underperformed amid a sell-off in tech shares on concerns over China’s growing AI capabilities.

The dollar index shined due to risk-off sentiment in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threats and uncertainty over the Federal Reserve’s rate path.

Gold hovered near record levels ahead of a U.S. Commerce Department report on personal income and spending due later in the day, which includes readings on consumer price inflation preferred by the Federal Reserve.

Oil prices climbed but were set for a small weekly loss as investors assess the impact of Trump’s threats on global growth.

On Thursday, Trump said he would follow through on his threat to impose 25 percent tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico as early as Saturday, although crude flows may be exempted from the levies.

He cited the flow of fentanyl and large trade deficits as among the reasons for the decision.

Trump also reiterated possible levies on China and threatened 100 percent tariffs on BRICS nations over dollar replacement moves.

Markets in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan remained closed for the Lunar New Year holiday.

Japanese markets ended slightly higher as a slew upbeat data kept the prospect of further rate hikes from the Bank of Japan alive.

The Nikkei average edged up by 0.15 percent to 39,572.49 while the broader Topix index settled 0.24 percent higher at 2,788.66.

Japan’s industrial output unexpectedly grew in December and retail sales hit a six-month high while Tokyo consumer price index for January increased to 3.4 percent from 3 percent in the previous month, separate reports revealed. The unemployment rate also dropped unexpectedly to 2.4 percent in January.

The yen held close to over a one-month high following hawkish comments from Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Ryozo Himino.

Seoul stocks ended notably lower as trading resumed after holidays. The Kospi average fell 0.77 percent to 2,517.37, dragged down by tech stocks.

SK Hynix, a key supplier to Nvidia Corp, slumped 9.9 percent and Samsung Electronics shed 2.4 percent after DeepSeek’s AI model shaked the chip industry.

Australian markets jumped to a record high as steeper-than-anticipated decline in inflation led markets to expect that the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) might consider cutting interest rates next month.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.45 percent to 8,532.30 while the broader All Ordinaries index gained half a percent to close at 8,789.70. Mining and energy stocks surged while financials ended on a subdued note due to expectations of lower interest rates.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index settled 0.52 percent higher at 12,995.01.

U.S. stocks fluctuated before ending higher overnight as investors reacted to broadly positive earnings from tech companies, upbeat comments from Tesla and President Trump’s renewed pledges to slap 25 percent tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico on Feb. 1.

In economic news, U.S. GDP grew by 2.3 percent in Q4 2024 after expanding by 3.1 percent in Q3, while jobless claims declined more than expected last week, separate reports showed.

The Dow edged up by 0.4 percent, nearing the record closing high set in early December. The S&P 500 gained half a percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 0.3 percent.

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