In a day of fluctuating fortunes, Asian stock markets presented a mixed picture following a significant decline in the U.S. stock market, which had previously reached record highs. This volatility comes as Wall Street digests various developments, including ongoing trade talks with China and the financial performance of major tech companies.
Despite the setback in the U.S., futures showed signs of recovery, and oil prices experienced a dip. President Donald Trump highlighted his recent conversation with China’s President Xi Jinping as a positive step, yet substantial challenges persist between the two economic powerhouses.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index surged by 1.7% to reach 52,201.05, hitting new peaks. This uptick followed the release of data indicating a 2.2% increase in industrial production for September, a stronger-than-expected rebound from a 1.5% decline in the previous month.
Meanwhile, Chinese markets faced a downturn, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index decreasing by 0.9% to 26,050.08, and the Shanghai Composite index sliding by 0.6% to 3,963.01. The decline coincided with new data revealing a continued contraction in China’s factory activity, marking the seventh consecutive month of decline. The official NBS Manufacturing PMI dropped to 49.0 in October, down from 49.8 in September, signaling ongoing challenges in the sector.
In Chinese markets, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index shed 0.9% to 26,050.08 and the Shanghai Composite index slipped 0.6% to 3,963.01.
Data released Friday showed factory activity in China contracted in October for a seventh straight month. The official NBS Manufacturing PMI fell to 49.0 from 49.8 in September.
South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.4% to 4,105.81, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.2% to 8,903.50. Taiwan’s Taiex gained 0.5%.
On Thursday, the S&P 500 fell 1% to 6,822.34, pulling further from its all-time high set on Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.2% to 47,522.12. The Nasdaq composite dropped 1.6% from its record set the day before, closing at 23,581.14.
Stock markets elsewhere in the world were mixed, coming off a highly anticipated meeting between the leaders of the world’s two largest economies. Trump rated his meeting with Xi as a “12” on a scale of zero to 10, saying he would cut tariffs.
But stocks had already run to records on expectations for potentially bigger improvements in trade friction between Beijing and Washington.
Earnings of Big Tech companies were also feeling the pressure of high hopes. Meta Platforms dropped 11.3%, cutting into what had been a 28.4% jump for the year so far. It was the heaviest weight on the S&P 500. Analysts said investors were likely perturbed by how much Facebook’s parent company said it’s planning to spend in 2026. Companies across the industry have been on an investment spree to build out their artificial-intelligence capabilities, and the concern is whether it will all pay off.
“There are moments in market history when capital stops behaving like money and starts acting like obsession — when spending becomes the strategy, not the consequence. That’s exactly where we are now with artificial intelligence,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary.
Microsoft sank 2.9% even though it reported stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Analysts pointed to how it also expects to spend more on investments in 2026 than in 2025, while growth for its Azure business may have fallen a bit short of some investors’ expectations.
On the winning side of Big Tech was Alphabet. Shares of Google’s parent company climbed 2.5% after its profit and revenue for the latest quarter easily topped analysts’ expectations.
How such companies do matters incredibly for investors. The trio of Alphabet, Meta and Microsoft alone account for 14.5% of the total value of all the companies in the S&P 500 index, which dictates the movements for many 401(k) accounts. That means movements for them and a handful of other Big Tech companies can easily overshadow what hundreds of other stocks are doing.
In other dealings early Friday, benchmark U.S. crude oil shed 42 cents to $60.15 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, lost 42 cents to $63.95.
The U.S. dollar fell to 153.95 Japanese yen from 154.14 yen. The euro rose to $1.1573 from $1.1566.
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AP Business Writers Stan Choe and Matt Ott contributed.
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