Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Thursday as investors assessed the U.S.′ blanket 15% tariffs on imports from South Korea and awaited details on the Bank of Japan's policy decision. Japan's central bank is widely expected to stand pat on short-term interest rates at 0.5% for the fourth consecutive time, when its two-day policy meeting concludes later in the day. Japan's Nikkei 225 benchmark moved up 0.21% while the broader Topix index ticked up 0.28%, as of 8.10 a.m. Singapore time (8.10 p.m. ET Wednesday). In South Korea, the Kospi index fell 0.14% while the small-cap Kosdaq was...
Policymakers around the globe should not react in haste to announcements by U.S. President Donald Trump's administration, and be prepared to argue their case, World Bank President Ajay Banga told Reuters. Trump's first week in office has seen a flurry of executive orders and policy plans, ranging from tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China to a review on all existing foreign assistance. "My only advice to everyone is don't be in too much of a hurry to respond or judge," Banga told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of the Mission 300 Africa Energy Summit in Tanzania's commercial capital...
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) dipped into the 44,000 handle during Monday's early overnight session, driven lower by a fresh bout of souring in investor risk appetite after a Chinese company globally released an open-source competitor to US-based AI models that have been largely proprietary up to this point. Investor sentiment was driven further into the floorboards by a political spat between United States (US) President Donald Trump and Colombia over the weekend after a disagreement between the two countries over the return of Colombian migrants from the US led to President Trump...
US stocks plunged on Monday (1/27), with the S&P 500 down 1.8%, the Dow Jones down about 207 points and the Nasdaq nearly 3%, driven by growing concerns about US dominance in AI. The latest AI model from Chinese startup DeepSeek, which has been praised for its cost-effectiveness and ability to run on less advanced chips, attracted significant attention as its AI Assistant overtook ChatGPT to become the top-rated free app on the US Apple App Store. The technology sector was by far the worst performer. Nvidia plunged more than 10%, Broadcom slumped 11.5% and Micron Technology lost more...
European stocks slumped on Monday (27/1) as the technology sector tracked a rout in other markets after China's improved low-cost, low-power artificial intelligence (AI) models fueled concerns about rivals' profits and the need for expensive technology. The pan-European STOXX 600 (.STOXX) was down 0.7% by 0815 GMT. U.S. Nasdaq Composite futures fell 3.1%, while S&P 500 futures fell 1%. Startup DeepSeek has launched a free assistant that it says uses low-cost chips and less data, appearing to challenge widespread bets in financial markets that AI will drive demand along the supply chain...
The Hang Seng rose 132 points, or 0.7%, to close at 20,198 on Monday (1/27), gaining for a second session amid broad gains. Positive sentiment was supported by news that the US and Colombia have averted trade tensions, as the White House confirmed that Bogota has agreed to all conditions set by President Trump in the migrant dispute. Adding to the upbeat mood, three Chinese insurance companies received regulatory approval to invest CNY 52 billion in stocks. Furthermore, excitement around DeepSeek, a Chinese AI with a cost-saving model, increased, sending tech stocks such as Kuaishou Tech...