Asian markets kept to a tight range, and were mostly headed for mild weekly declines
Most Asian stocks were muted on Friday, while Chinese shares turned positive on data showing the economy grew as expected.
Technology stocks clocked relatively smaller losses, while chipmaker TSMC soared to record highs on stronger-than-expected Q3 earnings.
China’s Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 and Shanghai Composite indexes gained nearly 1.2% each, recovering sharply from a negative start to the day. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index added 1.6% on gains in locally-listed mainland stocks.
Gross domestic data showed China’s economy rose 4.6% year-on-year in the third quarter, as expected. Quarter-on-quarter growth also accelerated, although year-to-date GDP growth still remained below the government’s 5% annual target.
Still, Friday’s gains helped Chinese stocks recover a bulk of their weekly losses, putting them on track for a muted weekly performance.
Chinese shares had suffered heavy losses earlier in the week after Beijing’s signals on more stimulus measures inspired limited confidence, given that the government still left investors wanting for more details on the planned measures.
Taiwan’s TSMC was an exception on Friday, with the company’s Taipei shares soaring around 6% to a record high.
The world’s largest contract chipmaker logged stronger-than-expected third-quarter earnings, and also presented an upbeat outlook, as it continued to benefit from robust demand fuelled by the AI industry.
TSMC is widely considered as a bellwether for the chipmaking industry, and flagged rising demand from AI for the sector.
But other Asian chipmaking stocks mostly pulled back on Friday. The sector was still reeling from weak guidance presented by chip equipment maker ASML Holding earlier this week, as the company said chip demand from applications outside AI was likely to remain weak.
Wider Asian markets kept to a tight range, and were mostly headed for mild weekly declines.
Nikkei 225 and TOPIX indexes gained marginally as CPI data showed inflation rose slightly more than expected in September, while underlying inflation remained robust.
Australia’s ASX 200 was the worst performer for the day, declining 0.9% as investors locked in profits from a recent record high. South Korea’s KOSPI slipped 0.4%.
