MANILA – Asian markets displayed mixed results amid cautious trading on Friday. This followed Wall Street’s achievement of a record high, spurred by Delta Air Lines’ optimistic forecast for the rest of 2025, which ignited a surge in airline stocks.
Stocks in China saw a significant rise, encouraged by potential additional stimulus measures and an upgrade by Goldman Sachs Group for Hong Kong stocks to a market-weight status. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 1.8% to 24,454.01, and the Shanghai Composite index increased by 0.7% to 3,533.90.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 edged down 0.2% to 39,545.27, while South Korea’s Kospi shed 0.4% to 3,173.15.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.1% to 8,580.10. India’s BSE Sensex fell 0.8% to 82,549.54.
The futures index for the S&P 500 was down 0.3% while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.4%.
“Just as the market was catching its breath at new highs—fueled by Nvidia’s momentum and ignoring the dollar’s subtle decline—President Trump disrupted the scene. A new chapter in the tariff saga includes imposing 35% duties on Canadian imports and a broad increase in overall tariffs ranging from 15% to 20%,” noted Stephen Innes from SPI Asset Management in a commentary.
“Asian equities, initially hopeful, wilted into flat lines as if someone had pulled the plug on the optimism generator. There’s a growing sense now that risk has become radioactive—tradable, but only in hazmat gloves,” he added.
On Thursday, Wall Street added to its recent milestones as the market closed at an all-time high after Delta Air Lines kicked off earnings season with a solid outlook for the second half of the year.
The S&P 500 rose 0.3%, inching past the record it set last week after a better-than-expected June jobs report.
The Nasdaq composite edged up 0.1%, enough of a gain to notch a new high for the second day in a row. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished 0.4% higher.
Delta surged 12%, bringing other airlines along with it, after beating Wall Street’s revenue and profit targets. The Atlanta airline also gave a more optimistic view for the remaining summer travel season than it had just a couple months ago.
The airline and other major U.S. carriers had pulled or slashed their forecasts in the spring, citing macroeconomic uncertainty amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff rollouts, which have consumers feeling uneasy about spending on travel.
Meanwhile, bitcoin (BTC-USD) climbed to a new all-time high Thursday, breaking above $113,000.
The token’s price jump came amid bullish momentum across risk assets and coincides with Nvidia’s surge to a $4 trillion valuation. It also comes days before the U.S. Congress’ Crypto Week on July 14, where lawmakers will debate a series of bills that could define the regulatory framework for the industry. In other dealings on Friday, benchmark U.S. crude added 29 cents to $66.86 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard for oil prices, advanced 22 cents to $68.86 per barrel. The dollar was trading at 146.78 Japanese yen, up from 146.20 yen. The euro slid to $1,1681 from $1.1704.
—- AP Business Writer Alex Veiga contributed to this report.
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