China slides due to Taiwan tensions, while South Korea boosted by Samsung gains.

From Investing.com: 2024-07-04 22:51:23

Asian stocks were mixed on Friday, as Chinese shares slid due to increased tensions with Taiwan, while South Korean markets outperformed on gains in Samsung. U.S. market holiday led to limited trading cues, with concerns over interest rate cuts affecting market caution. U.S. stock index futures remained stagnant in Asian trade.

Chinese stocks were the worst performers, with both Shanghai and Shenzhen indexes losing about 1%, driven by tensions with Taiwan. Taiwanese firms pulled staff from China amid escalating tensions. Any aggression from Beijing could draw U.S. ire and spark more economic restrictions against China, causing losses in mainland stocks.

South Korea’s KOSPI was the top performer in Asia, rising nearly 1%, led by Samsung Electronics Co Ltd reporting a 15-fold spike in second quarter profit. Increased demand for memory chips from the AI industry boosted sales and margins, benefiting other chipmaking stocks like SK Hynix Inc.

Japanese stocks neared record highs on Friday, with export-oriented stocks surging against a weaker yen, while limited monetary tightening by the BOJ boosted sentiment. Soft household spending data enhanced the notion of the frail Japanese economy, leading to bets that the BOJ will maintain ultra-loose monetary conditions.

Japanese tech stocks tracked gains in Samsung, with SoftBank Group Corp. at record highs. Broader Asian markets were flat-to-low, with concerns over China impacting Australia’s ASX. Indian shares were vulnerable to profit-taking after hitting record highs, as futures for India’s Nifty index indicated a mildly negative open.



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