Asian stock markets opened the week on a cautious note, with Japan and South Korea leading regional losses after Wall Street’s tech-heavy sell-off. But Hong Kong stood out rallying strongly on signs of recovery in Chinese factory activity.
The downturn followed Friday’s decline in U.S. markets, where technology shares dragged indexes lower. That weakness spilled over into Asia, particularly in tech-linked stocks. At the same time, investors are keeping a close eye on upcoming U.S. labor and economic reports, as well as lingering trade and tariff uncertainties.
“U.S. stock index futures edged higher in Asia hours on Monday,”
Japan and South Korea Lead Losses
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 fell nearly 2% in early trading, weighed down by declines in major exporters and tech giants. Semiconductor testing firm Advantest Corp. tumbled more than 9%, while SoftBank Group slid almost 7%. The broader TOPIX also slipped 0.8%.
South Korea’s KOSPI dropped 1.1%, with heavyweights under pressure. Samsung Electronics declined 2.5%, and chipmaker SK Hynix shed 4.5%. Sentiment was further dampened after the U.S. revoked approvals last week for both companies to purchase semiconductor equipment for their China operations.
Elsewhere, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.7%. Singapore’s Straits Times Index held steady, while India’s Nifty 50 edged 0.4% higher.
Hong Kong Rises on China PMI Boost
In contrast, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index surged about 2% outperforming its regional peers. A private survey revealed that China’s factory activity expanded at the fastest pace in five months in August, easing some concerns over U.S.-China trade tensions.
The upbeat reading contrasted with an official government report that showed contraction for the fifth straight month. Still, investors viewed the private data as a hopeful sign of stabilizing demand in China’s industrial sector.
Mainland benchmarks were muted, with the Shanghai Composite inching up 0.1% and the CSI 300 finishing largely unchanged.
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