Saudi shares lead Gulf gains
The Saudi stock market led Gulf equities higher on Wednesday after the kingdom said it will open its capital market to all categories of foreign investors from next month, while traders awaited U.S. labour-market data for clues on the Federal Reserve’s policy path. Saudi Arabia’s benchmark stock index rose as much as 2.5 percent and ended 1.6 percent higher, its biggest intraday gain in more than three months, with most constituents rising. Finance, communication and consumer staples shares led advances, with heavyweight Al Rajhi Bank and Saudi National Bank rising 3.4 percent and 5.9 percent, respectively. Exchange operator Saudi Tadawul Group climbed 5.2 percent, its sharpest rise since late September. The rally followed a statement from the Capital Market Authority on Tuesday saying all foreign investors will be able to invest directly in the main market from February 1, after the regulator scrapped the “Qualified Foreign Investor” regime and removed rules that previously limited access.
Australia shares edge up
Australian shares rose slightly on Thursday, as gains in banking and healthcare stocks countered a decline in miners, a day after mixed inflation data left the central bank’s monetary policy path uncertain. The S&P/ASX 200 index edged up 0.1 percent to 8,707.50 by 0012 GMT. The benchmark rose 0.2 percent on Wednesday. Data released on Wednesday showed that consumer prices rose 3.4 percent in November from a year earlier, slower than October’s alarmingly high 3.8 percent, but a key measure of core inflation increased to 3.2 percent for the year, staying stubbornly above the Reserve Bank of Australia’s target band of 2 percent to 3 percent. The RBA has already warned it could raise its cash rate if inflation doesn’t cool sufficiently, and markets imply a 31 percent chance that the central would hike by a quarter point at its meeting on February 3.
Japan’s Nikkei falls
Japan’s Nikkei share average slid for a second straight day on Thursday, dragged lower by profit-taking in the artificial intelligence (AI) sector and as trade tensions heat up with China. The Nikkei 225 Index fell 0.6 percent to 51,660.50 as of the midday break. The broader Topix edged down 0.1 percent. The Nikkei gauge marked a record closing high on Tuesday, with gains over recent months driven largely by optimism over AI. SoftBank Group, a major domestic investor in AI, and chip sector heavyweights like Advantest Corp and Tokyo Electron have been major beneficiaries of the trend. “The decline in certain high-priced stocks, particularly AI and semiconductor-related stocks, is weighing heavily on the index on Thursday,” said Nomura Securities strategist Wataru Akiyama.
Asian stocks down
Emerging Asian stocks slipped on Wednesday, easing from record highs scaled recently due to AI-led capital flows, but clawed back some losses in afternoon trade, while most currencies were on the defensive against a slightly firmer dollar. The MSCI index of emerging Asia equities snapped an eight-session rally that had lifted it to near five-year highs, but stayed within a few points of its record peak hit on Tuesday. A broader gauge of global EM equities posted its biggest drop in three weeks, after eight straight sessions of gains. Taiwan’s technology-weighted equity benchmark ended 0.5 percent lower at 30,435.47 points, about 150 points shy of its lifetime high scaled on Tuesday. South Korea’s KOSPI index, another tech-heavy equity gauge, recouped losses in the afternoon to finish at a record closing high of 4,611.72 points, boosted by chipmakers Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.
S&P 500 and Nasdaq gain benchmark index record highs
The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq gained on Wednesday, with the benchmark index at record highs, as technology stocks extended their rally from the previous session, while investors shrugged the latest labor market reports. Technology stocks on the S&P 500 were the biggest boosts, up 0.7 percent. Microsoft was up 2 percent, while Nvidia and Broadcom added 1.5 percent each. On the flip side, big banks slipped after rallying for the last three sessions, with Bank of America down 2.2 percent and Goldman Sachs off 0.8 percent. JPMorgan Chase slipped 2.5 percent after Wolfe Research downgraded the bank to “peer perform” from “outperform”. The banking sector put pressure on the blue-chip Dow, which had hit an intraday record high earlier in the session. It is now about 1.3 percent away from a historic 50,000 level and the S&P 500 about 0.6 percent from the 7,000 peak.
European stocks cool
European stocks ended flat on Wednesday, snapping a run of record closes as investors paused to digest the latest US–Venezuela developments and sifted through a fresh batch of economic data. Even though markets have mostly shrugged off the recent uptick in geopolitical risk, investors turned more cautious after President Donald Trump said the US had struck a deal to import USD2 billion of Venezuelan crude, an agreement expected to boost supply. Oil prices fell on the remarks. In London, energy heavyweights Shell and BP slid over 3 percent each, dragging Europe’s broader energy sub-index down 2.2 percent. The pan-European STOXX 600 index closed flat at 604.99 points, a day after notching a record closing high.
China stocks mix
China stocks were mixed on Wednesday but remained near their highest levels in more than 10 years, supported by stronger trading volumes and expectations of corporate profit growth, while Hong Kong shares pulled back after a three-day rally. China’s blue-chip CSI300 Index ended 0.3 percent down, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.1 percent. Hong Kong’s benchmark Hang Seng was down 0.9 percent. Onshore turnover has picked up since the start of the New Year, reaching 2.8 trillion yuan (USD404.79 billion) on Wednesday, the highest since September 18, 2025. The Shanghai Composite Index crossed the key 4,000-point threshold this week, logging its highest level since July 2015.