The Nikkei 225 index opened lower in trading this morning, Wednesday (December 31, 2025), as investors exercised caution on the final trading day of the year. Index movements tended to be limited as many market participants chose to reduce activity ahead of the New Year holiday, resulting in thinner-than-usual trading volumes. Pressure on the Nikkei stemmed from profit-taking after positive performance throughout the year, as well as concerns about the still-uncertain global economic conditions. Export-oriented stocks were also pressured by the yen's exchange rate, while technology stocks...
European markets closed higher on Tuesday, paring the previous session's losses. The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed up 0.3%, notching a new record closing high, lifted by surging shares of Copenhagen-listed Novo Nordisk. That brings the benchmark's year-to-date gains to 16%. With a week to go, it looks on track for its third consecutive year of gains. Investors are watching Novo Nordisk stock after the Wegovy-maker gained FDA approval for the first-ever GLP-1 pill, giving the Danish firm a head start over U.S. rival Eli Lilly. Novo stock closed 9.2% higher as the best performer among...
Stocks fell slightly on Tuesday after delayed economic data came in well above expectations, signaling that the U.S. economy may be holding up better than originally thought. The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded 53 points lower, or 0.1%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite traded around the flatline. The Commerce Department reported that the U.S. economy expanded at 4.3% pace in the third quarter, much better than the 3.2% estimate that economists polled by Dow Jones had forecast. The report — which was postponed from its initially planned release date of Oct. 30 because of the...
European stocks edged higher on Tuesday, with the STOXX 50 up 0.1% and the STOXX 600 gaining 0.3% to reach a fresh record high, rebounding after a mildly negative session the previous day. The advance was led by the pharmaceutical sector. Shares of Novo Nordisk surged nearly 6% after the company received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration to market an oral version of its obesity treatment, Wegovy, in the US. Other major drugmakers also posted gains, with AstraZeneca rising 0.8%, Novartis adding 0.7%, and Roche up 0.6%. Defensive sectors, including telecommunications and...
The Hang Seng dropped 28 points, or 0.1%, to close at 25,774 on Tuesday, reversing early gains led mainly by tech stocks and snapping a four-session winning streak. The decline followed a 3.5% fall in shares of Kuaishou Technology after media reports said the Chinese short-video platform experienced a sudden surge in explicit content due to a cyberattack on Monday. The stock plunged as much as 6%, its biggest one-day percentage drop since October 14, before closing down 3.5%. The company confirmed it had experienced a cyberattack on Monday night and said in a statement on Tuesday that it...
The Nikkei 225 Index traded flat to close around 50,412 on Tuesday, following a two-session winning streak, as investors adopted a cautious stance ahead of the government's finalization of the fiscal 2026 draft budget on Friday. The upcoming budget is projected to exceed ¥122 trillion ($781 billion), marking a record high and requiring bond issuance above last year's ¥28.6 trillion. This would come on top of a ¥21.3 trillion stimulus package funded through a supplementary budget for the current fiscal year, aimed at alleviating households from the effects of rising living costs. Notable...