This is CNBC’s live blog covering Asia-Pacific markets.
Asia-Pacific markets were mixed Friday, after Wall Street rose overnight as President Donald Trump signed a reciprocal tariffs plan, but did not enact the levies immediately.
Mainland China’s CSI 300 Index ended the day 0.87% higher. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index traded up 3.48% in its final hour, extending gains from the previous session. The HSI is on track to its highest weekly gain since October.
South Korea’s Kospi closed up 0.31% at 2,591.05, while the small-cap Kosdaq advanced 0.94% to end the day at 756.32.
The country’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate hit 2.9% in January, easing from its three-year high of 3.7% in the month before.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 ended the day 0.79% lower at 39,149.43, while the broader Topix index lost 0.23% to close at 2,759.21.
India’s benchmark Nifty 50 lost 0.82%, while the BSE Sensex index was down 0.83% in choppy trading as at 1.p.m. local time.
The South Asian country’s wholesale inflation grew 2.31% in January year on year, slightly lower than the 2.5% rise estimated by economists in a Reuters poll.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 closed 0.19% higher at 8,555.80.
In Southeast Asia, Singapore’s economy expanded by 4.4% in 2024, its fastest growth since 2021, data from the Ministry of Trade and Industry shows. GDP was up 5% year on year in the fourth-quarter of 2024, surpassing the 4.7% growth rate expected by Reuters.
Investors have been watching the city-state’s Straits Times Index which hit an all-time high at the start of the week. It was trading 0.19% lower in its last hour of trade.
Meanwhile, Malaysia’s economy grew 5.1% in 2024, data from Bank Negara shows. Its GDP expanded 5% in the last quarter of the year, better than the 4.8% estimated by Reuters.
Overnight in the U.S., stocks rose following fresh inflation data and updates on U.S. tariff plans.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 342.87 points, or 0.77%, to 44,711.43. The S&P 500 climbed 1.04% to 6,115.07, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.50% to 19,945.64.
The Dow had hit session highs after U.S. President Donald Trump signed a presidential memorandum to examine reciprocal tariffs on foreign nations. As part of this, he noted that the U.S. will treat other countries’ non-tariff policies as unfair trade practices that warrant tariffs in response.
— CNBC’s Pia Singh, Alex Harring and Kevin Breuninger contributed to this report.
Fast-fashion retailer Shein could reportedly delay its London listing to the second half of 2025
Fast-fashion retailer Shein is likely to postpone its listing on the London Stock Exchange until the second-half of this year, as U.S. President Donald Trump cracks down on tariff-free imports of small-ticket items, according to the Financial Times.
Trump had sought to repeal the de minimis duty exemption in the U.S., which had allowed low-cost goods worth less than $800 to be exported to the U.S., without being subjected to tariffs, but then paused repealing the exemption last week.
Shein has never publicly confirmed the timeline for its IPO. However, reports show that the company was aiming to list as early as Easter, or end April, this year.
— Amala Balakrishner, Financial Times
Shares in Nissan surge over 8% as report says KKR looking to invest in company
Shares in Nissan Motor surged as much as 8.4% Friday, as KKR reportedly is considering investing in the automaker.
The U.S. private equity firm is evaluating an equity or debt investment to improve Nissan’s financial position, Bloomberg reported.
On Thursday, Nissan and Honda Motor terminated their talks to merge and create what would have been the world’s third-largest automaker by sales.
Nissan’s operating profit for the October to December quarter came in at 31.1 billion yen ($0.2 billion), falling 78% from a year earlier, the company reported Thursday.
It has now lowered its operating profit forecast by 20% to 120 billion yen for the current financial year ending in March.
— Amala Balakrishner
South Korea’s unemployment rate eases to 2.7% in January
South Korea’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate hit 2.9% in January, easing from its three-year high of 3.7% from the month before.
The country’s unemployed population increased by 11,000 people, or 1% year on year, to 1,083,000 in the first month of 2025, according to government data released Friday.
Overall, South Korea’s economically active population grew 0.5% year on year to some 28,961,000 million people in January.
— Amala Balakrishner
India index down 3% for the week
The MSCI India Index inched down around 0.2% Thursday, putting the ETF down 3.1% week to date.
The pullback comes amid Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Washington, D.C., where he and President Trump are expected to hold a joint press conference later on Thursday.
When signing the executive order for U.S. reciprocal tariffs on Thursday, Trump said “India has more tariffs than any other country.” The U.S. recorded a $45.7 billion trade deficit with India in 2024, according to data from the Census Bureau.
— Hakyung Kim
