Wall Street rises as materials and crypto stocks offset continued bond sell-off
Investing.com -- Asian stocks traded mixed on Friday as gains in Chinese equities offset continued weakness in Japan and South Korea, where semiconductor shares remained under pressure ahead of a crucial U.S. jobs report that could shape the Federal Reserve’s September policy outlook.
Overnight, Wall Street ended mixed after a fresh batch of economic data highlighted the resilience of the U.S. labour market. Initial jobless claims held below 200,000 for a third straight week, while second-quarter productivity growth topped expectations, reinforcing uncertainty over the Federal Reserve’s September policy decision.
In Asian trade, Nasdaq 100 Futures edged up about 0.1%, while S&P 500 Futures slipped marginally by 0.03% as investors looked ahead to Friday’s closely watched July nonfarm payrolls report.
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Chip rout deepens as KOSPI extends weekly slide; Fujifilm tumbles
Technology stocks remained under pressure as investors continued to reassess lofty AI valuations following the sector’s sharp rebound from last month’s selloff.
South Korea’s KOSPI fell about 0.8%, leaving the benchmark down more than 5% for the week and on track for a seventh consecutive weekly decline. The index has now fallen in eight of its past 10 trading sessions as investors continued to unwind positions in AI-linked chipmakers after their blistering first-half rally.
SK Hynix slid more than 4%, extending a bruising weekly decline, while Samsung Electronics rebounded nearly 1% after heavy losses earlier in the week. LG Innotek slipped about 1%.
The weakness followed disappointing post-earnings reactions from several U.S. semiconductor companies this week, reinforcing concerns that near-term earnings may struggle to justify elevated AI-related valuations despite continued investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell about 0.3%, although the benchmark remained on track for a weekly gain of roughly 1%. The broader TOPIX rose about 0.3%.
Kioxia Holdings fell more than 5%, Murata Manufacturing lost over 4%, while TDK Corp eased about 1%.
Fujifilm Holdings plunged nearly 18% after the company said it was considering a partial spinoff of its imaging business, making it one of the region’s biggest decliners.
China outperforms, Singapore banks shine as insurers extend losses
Mainland Chinese shares outperformed most regional peers. The Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 rose about 1%, while the Shanghai Composite gained roughly 0.8%.
BOE Technology advanced about 1.5% and NAURA Technology gained around 1.4%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped about 0.1%, with Alibaba and Tencent down 0.2%, each.
Hong Kong-listed insurers also extended losses after reports earlier this week that Chinese authorities have begun enforcing taxes on investment income from offshore insurance policies. Prudential fell about 1% and Standard Chartered declined over 1%.
Singapore’s FTSE Straits Times Singapore gained about 0.9% as another round of strong bank earnings supported sentiment. DBS Group was up roughly 2.7% for the week after posting record quarterly earnings, while OCBC rose more than 2.5% this week and hit a record high following its results. UOB, however, slipped about 1.7% after releasing earnings on Friday.
Elsewhere, India’s Nifty 50 slipped about 0.2%, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 eased 0.1%.
Meanwhile, oil prices strengthened after reports that Iran is reviewing legislation that could restrict U.S., Israeli and other vessels from transiting the Strait of Hormuz, while fresh threats from Yemen’s Houthi movement against Saudi Arabia added to concerns over regional supply risks.
The developments came even as officials in Washington and Tehran continued to signal that an agreement on the strategic waterway could be nearing.
