Asian stock markets started Tuesday’s session mostly on the front foot, with Japanese equities notably rising as investors appeared to shrug off a weekend election setback for the country’s ruling coalition.
The positive mood was also supported by record highs on Wall Street, though a long winning streak for Singapore’s benchmark index came to an end. Indian benchmarks, including the Sensex, are poised for a higher open.
In a surprising display of resilience, Japan’s Nikkei 225 benchmark added 0.91% as of 8:10 a.m. Singapore time, while the broader Topix index increased by 0.83%.
In early trade, the 225-stock share average had advanced as much as 1.12% to hit 40,254.18. This rally came as markets reopened after a weekend in which the ruling party lost its majority in the upper house of parliament, a development that investors seem to be taking in stride.
Over in South Korea, the Kospi index ticked up 0.1%, and the small-cap Kosdaq advanced 0.7%.
Diplomatic efforts are a key focus in Seoul, as the country’s new finance minister, Koo Yun-cheol, and minister for trade, Yeo Han-koo, are set to hold trade talks with their US counterparts, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, this Friday, Reuters reported on Tuesday.
This comes as imports from the East Asian country to the US have been slapped with tariffs of 25% starting August 1, the same level imposed by US President Donald Trump in April.
Elsewhere in the region, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 benchmark rose 0.54%. Chinese and Hong Kong stocks also started the day higher, with the Hang Seng Index adding 0.28% and the mainland’s CSI 300 moving up 0.13% as of 9:37 a.m. local time.
Singapore’s winning streak ends, SoftBank surges on AI news
In a notable reversal, Singapore’s 30-stock benchmark Straits Times Index broke its impressive 11-session winning streak on Tuesday, trading in negative territory. The index was down 0.19% at 4,199.11 as of 10:18 a.m. local time, with losses led by the financial, utilities, and technology sectors.
The worst-performing stocks included Wilmar International, which slipped 0.99%, Frasers Centrepoint Trust, which dropped 0.9%, and Keppel, which lost 0.69%.
In corporate news, shares of Japanese investment giant SoftBank Group surged by as much as 5.74% on Tuesday, extending its gains for a third straight session.
This rally was fueled by a report in The Wall Street Journal, citing sources familiar with the matter, that SoftBank is set to build a small data center by the end of the year in partnership with ChatGPT creator OpenAI. The data center is likely to be built in Ohio, the report added.
The three companies are reportedly leading a massive $500 billion partnership, dubbed “Stargate,” aimed at bolstering US artificial intelligence infrastructure. However, the report also noted that the companies had not yet found common ground on crucial terms of the partnership, including where to build the sites.
Indian markets poised for higher opening
Indian equity benchmarks, the BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty, are set to open higher on Tuesday, supported by the overnight gains on Wall Street and the mixed but generally positive cues from other Asian markets.
However, persistent uncertainty over a potential US-India trade deal and a subdued start to the corporate earnings season may temper investor sentiment.
At 8:10 AM, GIFT Nifty futures were up 100 points at 25,189, indicating a firm opening for the Indian share market. This follows a session on Monday where Indian equities ended higher in choppy trade.
The benchmark indices rose by up to 0.55%, buoyed by a spurt in buying activity in the final hour of trading.
The BSE Sensex had closed 442 points higher at 82,200, and the NSE Nifty added 122 points to settle at 25,090.
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