Asia-Pacific markets set to open mostly lower on penultimate day of the year

Asia-Pacific markets set to open mostly lower on penultimate day of the year


Aerial view by drone of Tokyo Cityscape with Tokyo Sky Tree visible in Tokyo city, Japan on sunrise.

pongnathee kluaythong | Moment | Getty Images

Asia-Pacific markets were set to mostly fall Tuesday, after the tech sell-down on Wall Street continued on AI bubble fears.

Nvidia shares dropped more than 1% Monday stateside, giving back some of its more than 5% gain in last week’s period. Palantir Technologies and Meta Platforms also suffered losses, as did Oracle.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 started the day up 0.25%.

However, Japan’s Nikkei 225 futures pointed to a weaker open for the market, with the futures contract in Chicago at 50,405 and its counterpart in Osaka at 50,380, compared with its previous close of 50,526.92.

Investors will be keeping an eye on SoftBank, which announced a deal late Monday to buy data center investment firm DigitalBridge for $4 billion as part of its artificial intelligence push.

SoftBank CEO and Chairman Masayoshi Son said the acquisition “will strengthen the foundation for next-generation AI data centers” and advance the firm’s vision to become a leading “Artificial Super Intelligence” platform provider. Shares of DigitalBridge jumped about 10% after the announcement.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures were at 25,603, marginally lower than the HSI’s last close of 25,635.23.

Investors will be focused on China’s military exercises around Taiwan, after the world’s second largest economy announced new drills surrounding the island Monday.

U.S. futures were little changed in early Asian hours.

Overnight in the U.S., the S&P 500 dropped 0.35%, while the Nasdaq Composite shed 0.50%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average pulled back by 0.51%.

Traders will be looking for home price data due Tuesday stateside at 9 a.m. ET, and the Federal Reserve’s December meeting minutes at 2 p.m. ET.

—CNBC’s Sean Conlon and Fred Imbert contributed to this report.



Source

Iran oil shock stirs memories of 1997 Asian Financial Crisis — but here’s why history may not repeat itself
World

Iran oil shock stirs memories of 1997 Asian Financial Crisis — but here’s why history may not repeat itself

A month into the worst oil supply disruption since the 1970s Arab embargo, the economic pain spreading across Asia is reviving an uncomfortable question: Could this be 1997 all over again? The parallels are hard to ignore. Asian currencies are under pressure, fueling the risk of capital outflows. Spiking energy costs have pushed governments to […]

Read More
‘Poorly run, piece of ice’: Trump targets Greenland again as Iran war deepens NATO rift
World

‘Poorly run, piece of ice’: Trump targets Greenland again as Iran war deepens NATO rift

WASHINGTON DC, UNITED STATES – APRIL 6: The United States President Donald Trump holds a Press Conference in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on April 6, 2026, in Washington DC, United States. Celal Gunes | Anadolu | Getty Images U.S. President Donald Trump appears to have set his eyes […]

Read More
Asia markets trade lower as investors assess fragile Iran-U.S. ceasefire deal
World

Asia markets trade lower as investors assess fragile Iran-U.S. ceasefire deal

An electronic stock board displays the Nikkei 225 Stock Average outside a securities firm in Tokyo, Japan, on Jan. 28, 2025. Toru Hanai | Bloomberg | Getty Images Asia-Pacific markets trade lower Thursday, as investors fret over news that Iran’s parliamentary speaker charged the U.S. of breaching the terms of the two-week ceasefire agreement. On Wednesday, […]

Read More