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Friday Feb 21 2025 03:56
2 min
Asian equities traded cautiously on Friday as lingering concerns over U.S. trade tariffs and prolonged high-interest rates dampened sentiment. However, a robust earnings report from Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) ignited a tech-driven rally in Hong Kong, offsetting broader regional sluggishness.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 and TOPIX hovered near flatline as January’s consumer inflation surged to a two-year peak, reinforcing expectations of additional Bank of Japan (BOJ) rate hikes. Core CPI stayed firmly above the BOJ’s 2% target, aligning with its outlook for wage-inflation synergy. Despite this, February PMIs revealed factory activity contracting for an eighth month, though service-sector expansion sustained overall growth.
Mainland China’s CSI 300 and Shanghai Composite showed limited movement as an AI-driven rally cooled. In contrast, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng soared over 2%, fueled by Alibaba’s 8.5% leap post-earnings. The e-commerce giant’s results reignited confidence in Chinese tech stocks, amplified by the buzz around DeepSeek AI—a catalyst for foreign inflows. Baidu and Tencent mirrored gains, solidifying Hong Kong as a regional bright spot.
Regional markets treaded water amid fears of imminent U.S. tariffs on autos and semiconductors. Australia’s ASX 200 slid 0.2%, extending its losing streak, though Domain Holdings surged 50% on a $1.7B takeover bid. South Korea’s KOSPI dipped 0.2% amid political turbulence, while India’s Nifty 50 futures hinted at further declines tied to growth worries.
Asian trade mirrored overnight Wall Street losses triggered by Trump’s tariff threats and Walmart’s underwhelming earnings. U.S. futures remained stagnant, reflecting caution ahead of policy developments.
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