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The stunning vista of Mount Fuji alongside Tokyo’s Shinjuku skyline was captured on February 14, 2025, by photographer Kiyoshi Ota, with the image distributed via Bloomberg and Getty Images.
Asia-Pacific stock markets displayed varied performances on Wednesday as investors evaluated Japan’s latest trade figures and the implications of its newly appointed government officials.
In September, Japanese exports broke a four-month streak of declines, posting a 4.2% increase compared to the previous year. This growth was largely driven by strong demand from other Asian countries, which helped counterbalance a decline in shipments to the United States.
Despite the positive figures, the export growth fell short of the 4.6% increase predicted by economists in a Reuters poll.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s new cabinet took office. In a notable appointment, her former competitor in the Liberal Democratic Party’s leadership contest, Shinjiro Koizumi, assumed the role of defense minister, while Satsuki Katayama made history as Japan’s first female finance minister.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and her new cabinet were sworn in on Tuesday, with her former rival in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s leadership race, Shinjiro Koizumi, named defense minister and Satsuki Katayama becoming Japan’s first female finance minister.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended the day just below the flatline at 49,307.79, while the Topix index gained 0.52% to 3,266.43, a new closing record.
Shares of SoftBank plunged over 10% before paring losses to about 5%. Shares had gained 8.5% on Monday.
South Korea’s markets bucked the wider fall in the region, with the Kospi setting a new closing record of 3,883.68, up 1.56% and marking its sixth straight winning session. The small-cap Kosdaq rose 0.76% to 879.15.
Shares of LG Chem soared 13% after Palliser Capital urged the chemicals company to revamp its board and buy back shares, according to a Reuters report.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index slipped 0.79%. Shares of Labubu doll maker Pop Mart, which reported a 250% surge in revenue for the third quarter on Tuesday, were up 3.3%. Mainland China’s CSI 300 was 0.49% lower.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.71% to 9,030.
Indian markets are closed for a holiday.
Overnight in the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average set a new closing record, boosted by strong earnings reports from companies such as Coca-Cola and 3M, while the S&P 500 was relatively unchanged.
The 30-stock index gained 0.47% to close at 46,924.74, and briefly topped 47,000 during the session.
The broad market S&P 500 closed just above the flatline at 6,735.35, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite lagged, falling 0.16% to 22,953.67.
—CNBC’s Sean Conlon and Pia Singh contributed to this report.
