Technology stocks lead gains to lift Asia markets
08:49, 19 October 2021
Technology stocks in Asia tracked Nasdaq’s overnight gains to help benchmark indices in Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong end higher on Tuesday.
Tech-heavy Nasdaq closed higher on Monday on the back of the start of third quarter earnings season. Analysts expect S&P 500 companies to show a 32% year-on-year rise in quarterly earnings, according to Refinitiv data as reported by Reuters.
On Tuesday, Japanese benchmark Nikkei 225 index ended about 0.7% higher at 29,2215.52 points. Broader Topix index rose 0.4% on Tuesday.
South Korean share highest in over two weeks
Tech start-up investor SoftBank Group jumped over 3% and semiconductor production equipment maker Tokyo Electron rose 1.9% on Tuesday.
Toyota Motor closed 1.3% higher on Tuesday after announcing that the company will invest $3.4bn in electric vehicle battery development and production in the US through 2030.
Across the Sea of Japan, South Korea’s KOSPI rose 0.7% to close at its highest in over two weeks. Tech heavyweights Samsung Electronics and SK hynix gained 0.6% each, while social media firm Naver and digital banker KakaoBank climbed over 2% each.
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Hang Seng TECH index up over 2%
In Hong Kong, benchmark Hang Seng index rose to an over one-month high on Tuesday. The index gained 1.5% to 25,787.21 points.
Tech stocks led gains with the Hang Seng TECH index advancing 2.3% on Tuesday. E-commerce giant Alibaba Group rose over 1% after the company unveiled a new semiconductor chip that will be used to power servers in its data centres.
Meanwhile, Hang Seng Properties index edged 0.2% lower on Tuesday after an official report showed China’s property sector contracted for the first time since the onset of the pandemic during the third quarter of 2021.
BHP shares fall 2% in Australia
Mainland China shares recovered from Monday’s losses with blue-chip CSI 300 index closing 1% higher on Tuesday.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index ended close to flat on Tuesday as gains in technology stocks countered losses in mining firms.
Australian Securities Exchange-listed shares in BHP Group slipped 2% after the miner said quarterly iron ore, copper, coal and nickel production fell due to maintenance and Covid-19-related disruptions.
Indonesian shares slip
In Southeast Asia, Indonesian shares fell 0.3% on Tuesday after the country’s central bank kept interest rates steady as expected.
Singapore’s Straits Times index rose 0.7% on Tuesday while Thailand’s SET50 index fell 0.9%.
Market in Malaysia was shut for holiday.
Read more: Alibaba shares jump after unveiling in-house server chips
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