Asian markets opened mixed on Thursday October 22, as a fading technology rally in the US pulled equity futures lower.
South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.47%, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 shed 0.17%. The broader Topix gained 0.26%, while Taiwan’s TAIEX rose 0.76%. Hang Seng futures slipped 0.2%, signalling a softer start in Hong Kong.
In India, the GIFT Nifty which indicates how the country’s stock market would open for the day predicted a muted start in the red. India’s primary market also stays in focus on Thursday, as the Jio Platforms IPO enters its second day after a historic opening session, when investors placed bids worth ₹70,000 crore.
Traders will also track bond markets, with the India 10-year yield at 7.43%, its highest level since 2023. Meanwhile, minutes of the Reserve Bank of India’s October meeting show policymakers warned that accelerating inflation demands continued vigilance, though they differed over how firmly to signal further tightening.
The country’s central bank raised its policy rate to 5.5% earlier this month, its first increase in nearly four years, and moved its stance to “calibrated tightening” from “neutral”. Two of the six rate-setters opposed the change.
The cautious tone in Asia follows a weak start for US futures. Dow Jones futures fell more than 100 points and Nasdaq futures dropped nearly 200 points in extended trade, after Wall Street’s third straight session of gains on Wednesday October 21.
After the closing bell, earnings from Meta, Tesla and IBM beat expectations, yet details within each report seemed to have left investors uneasy. Meta’s revenue and earnings per share topped forecasts, and its mid-point revenue guidance of $74.5 billion for the fourth quarter exceeded the street’s $73.7 billion estimate. Its shares jumped over 5% before settling 2.1% higher.
Tesla also did better than feared, but its core automotive revenue fell 3% and energy revenue dropped 16% from a year earlier, which the company blamed on lower selling prices and battery supply problems.
Capital expenditure doubled and free cash flow fell 62%, while Tesla cut its full-year capex forecast to $20 billion from $25 billion.
IBM beat on basic measures, but its gross margin narrowed and it kept its constant-currency revenue growth guidance at 4% to 5%, sending the stock down 4.5%.
Oil, meanwhile, stayed above $110 a barrel. A late rally in Brent crude faded as fears of a wider West Asia conflict eased, after the US clarified that it had ordered staff to leave Saudi Arabia only, not the whole Gulf region as one report had suggested.
An attack on a Saudi Aramco facility killed two people, though operations were unaffected. Crude also eased after the Kremlin said President Vladimir Putin had agreed to trilateral talks with the US and Ukraine, and reports suggest they could resume in the first 10 days of November.