Why it matters
- Most Asian markets fell on Thursday, Oct. 29, as weak results from Samsung Electronics and Alphabet revived worries about AI spending, Trading Economics said. The Shenzhen Component fell 2.92% and the Kospi 1.24%, Yahoo Finance data showed.
- Japan bucked the trend. The Nikkei 225 rose 1.10% to 64,659.47, a third straight gain, after Advantest raised its full-year forecast and its shares jumped 6.01%.
- The Bank of Japan ends its two-day meeting on Friday, Oct. 30, its schedule shows, and is widely expected to hold its 1.25% rate, Trading Economics said.
Session recap: what happened in this region's trading day, with sources.
Asian stocks fell on Thursday, Oct. 29, because disappointing results from Samsung Electronics and Alphabet revived worries about the payoff from heavy artificial intelligence spending, Trading Economics said. China's Shenzhen Component fell 2.92%, South Korea's Kospi 1.24% and Taiwan's Taiex 1.42%, according to Yahoo Finance data. Japan's Nikkei 225 bucked the trend, rising 1.10% to 64,659.47 on Advantest's raised forecast, and Australia and India also gained.
| Market | Thursday close | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Nikkei 225 (Japan) | 64,659.47 | +1.10% |
| Kospi (South Korea) | 5,937.66 | −1.24% |
| Taiex (Taiwan) | 46,368.33 | −1.42% |
| Hang Seng (Hong Kong) | 22,958.65 | −0.59% |
| Shanghai Composite (China) | 3,651.43 | −0.82% |
| Shenzhen Component (China) | 11,138.20 | −2.92% |
| S&P/ASX 200 (Australia) | 8,891.80 | +0.50% |
| Sensex (India) | 74,151.04 | +1.24% |
| Nifty 50 (India) | 22,936.75 | +1.05% |
Source: Yahoo Finance daily chart data; changes are from Wednesday, Oct. 28, closes. The ASX 200 is Yahoo Finance's last price after the close.
Why did Asian stocks fall today?
Asian tech stocks fell because Samsung Electronics' and Alphabet's results disappointed investors and renewed concerns about returns on AI investment, Trading Economics said. Samsung's third-quarter chip profit came in below analysts' forecasts, it said. Alphabet's results were released after Wall Street's close on Wednesday.
The selloff reversed part of Wednesday's AI rally, when the Kospi jumped 6.63%; see our Asia Wednesday recap.
Why did the Kospi fall?
The Kospi gave back 74.78 points to 5,937.66 on profit-taking and losses in heavyweight stocks, Trading Economics said. Yahoo Finance data showed LG Energy Solution down 8.60%, Samsung Electronics 4.13% and Hanwha Aerospace 3.43%. SK hynix rose 2.62%, a day after its record results. South Korea's business sentiment index rose to its highest since August 2022, Trading Economics said.
Why did China and Hong Kong stocks fall?
Mainland markets fell in a tech rout, Trading Economics said. The Shanghai Composite fell 0.82% to 3,651.43 and the Shenzhen Component 2.92% to 11,138.20. Eoptolink Technology fell 11.06%, Zhongji Innolight 8.53% and Cambricon 4.70%, it said.
The Hang Seng fell 0.59% to 22,958.65, as tech shares led losses, Trading Economics said. Yahoo Finance data showed Lenovo down 6.90%, SMIC 5.94% and Tencent 2.58%. Energy and materials stocks offered some support after PetroChina's third-quarter profit rose about a fifth, it said.
How did Japan, Taiwan and Australia trade?
The Nikkei 225 rose 705.28 points to 64,659.47, its third straight gain, Trading Economics said. Advantest jumped 6.01% and Tokyo Electron 2.35%, Yahoo Finance data showed. Investors also looked ahead to the Bank of Japan meeting, where rates are widely expected to stay at 1.25%, with a possible signal of a December hike, Trading Economics said. The yen was at about 158.02 per dollar around 13:00 GMT.
Taiwan's Taiex fell 667.25 points to 46,368.33. TSMC slipped 0.41%, Yahoo Finance data showed, and Trading Economics data showed MediaTek down 4.49% and Delta Electronics 4.52%.
Australia's ASX 200 rose 0.50% as financials led, Trading Economics said. The four major banks rose between 1.9% and 2.3%, while Wesfarmers fell 4.0% and Woolworths 3.3%.
What comes next?
The Bank of Japan ends its Oct. 29-30 meeting on Friday and publishes its Outlook Report the same day, the BoJ's schedule shows. Europe's session is in our Europe Thursday recap, and U.S. futures, GDP and Amazon's results are in our day-ahead guide. Live levels are on the markets page.
Follow the rest of the trading day on our global market today page, with the latest Asia, Europe and Americas session recaps.
Sources
- Trading Economics, South Korea stock market (Kospi)
- Trading Economics, Japan stock market (Nikkei 225)
- Trading Economics, China stock market
- Trading Economics, Hong Kong stock market (Hang Seng)
- Trading Economics, Taiwan stock market (Taiex)
- Trading Economics, Australia stock market (ASX 200)
- Trading Economics, Japan interest rate
- Bank of Japan, Monetary Policy Meetings schedule
- Yahoo Finance, chart data for the Kospi, Nikkei 225, Taiex, Hang Seng, Shanghai Composite, Shenzhen Component, S&P/ASX 200, Sensex, Nifty 50, Samsung Electronics, SK hynix, LG Energy Solution, Hanwha Aerospace, Advantest, Tokyo Electron, Tencent, SMIC, Lenovo, TSMC and USD/JPY