Asian shares mostly slipped on Thursday as the region’s main stock exchange was closed for New Year holidays in Tokyo.
Investors remained cautious amid concerns about policy changes from incoming US President Donald Trump, while political uncertainty in South Korea heightened a wait-and-see mood.
Australia’s S&P/ASx 200 rose 0.4% to 8,193.90 in early trading. South Korea’s Kospi fell about 0.1% to 2,397.54. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1.3% to 19,807.19, while the Shanghai Composite fell 0.8% to 3,325.56.
Wall Street trading was closed on Wednesday due to the New Year holiday.
On Thursday, investors will get an updated snapshot of US manufacturing spending for November, while US manufacturing numbers for December will be released on Friday.
Markets halted in mourning for Carter
The New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq will close their equities and options markets on Jan. 9 in observance of the National Day of Mourning for former President Jimmy Carter, continuing a long-standing Wall Street tradition of mourning the nation’s leaders. The 39th US President and global humanitarian died on Sunday at his home in Plains, Georgia. He was 100 years old.
US stock indexes closed mostly lower on Tuesday as the market closed on the final day of the year breaking another milestone on Wall Street.
The S&P 500 gave up early gains and closed down 0.4%. The benchmark index, which sets 57 record highs in 2024, has gained 23.3% for the year. This was its second consecutive year of gains of more than 20%. The last time such huge consecutive annual increases in the index occurred in 1998.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.1% and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.9%.
Big Tech stocks have led this year’s rally, leading the Nasdaq to a yearly gain of 28.6%. The Dow, which has a very light weighting to technology, rose 12.9% for the year.
All told, the S&P 500 fell 25.31 points on Tuesday, to 5,881.63. The Dow fell 29.51 points to 42,544.22 and the Nasdaq fell 175.99 points to 19,310.79.
Growth helps propel US market
US markets’ spectacular run was driven by a growing economy, solid consumer spending and a strong jobs market.
Skyrocketing prices for companies in the artificial-intelligence business like Nvidia and Super Micro Computer helped drive the market to new heights.
After three interest rate cuts in 2024, the Fed has signaled a more cautious stance in 2025 as inflation remains stable as the country prepares for Trump’s transition to the White House. Trump’s threats to raise tariffs on imported goods have raised concerns that inflation could rise again as companies pay the costs of tariffs.
In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude rose 36 cents to $72.08 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 34 cents to $74.98 a barrel.
In currency trading, the US dollar fell to 157.28 JPY from 157.24 yen. The euro rose from $1.0361 to $1.0373.
