Daijiworld Media Network – Seoul

Seoul, Oct 21: Asian stock markets were mixed on Wednesday, with technology shares in Japan and South Korea advancing following a broad rally on Wall Street.

South Korea’s Kospi surged more than 4% in early trading before settling at a gain of 3.4% at 5,733.82 by midday. AI company Elice, whose shares plunged 32% on Tuesday during its first day of trading, rebounded sharply, hitting the upper limit of 29.9%.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.3% to 64,915.59 after the country reported a 16.7% year-on-year increase in exports in September, driven by strong sales of automobiles and computer-related components.

Imports rose 18.9%, largely due to higher oil prices amid the war with Iran, nearly doubling Japan’s trade deficit.

Oxford Economics said robust demand for artificial intelligence was likely to continue supporting technology-related exports. However, non-AI capital goods and automobile exports could weaken amid elevated energy prices and borrowing costs, weighing on overall exports.

Markets in Greater China mostly declined. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index slipped 0.1% to 23,836.46, while the Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.3% to 3,723.95. Taiwan’s Taiex gained 1.5%.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 edged down 0.1% to 8,809.60.

On Wall Street, most US stocks advanced on Tuesday following strong earnings reports from Equifax, Hasbro and other companies. Oil prices also eased after approaching their highest levels since the war with Iran began.

The S&P 500 gained 0.3%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 1%. The Nasdaq Composite slipped less than 0.1% amid continued volatility in artificial intelligence-related stocks.

Strong expectations for corporate earnings growth have helped US stock markets reach record levels in recent weeks, despite concerns over persistent inflation, higher interest rates and other economic challenges.