BANGKOK — Global stock markets experienced a mixed response on Thursday following China’s latest efforts to rejuvenate its weakened stock exchanges, aiming to instill confidence among investors that share prices will begin to rise once more.
In Europe, Germany’s DAX index increased by 0.2% reaching 21,300, while France’s CAC 40 saw a slight uptick of 0.1% to settle at 7,847.38. However, the UK’s FTSE 100 recorded a slight decline, falling less than 0.1% to 8,539.88.
Futures for the S&P 500 dropped 0.2%, and those for the Dow Jones Industrial Average saw a minor decrease of less than 0.1%. Chinese officials announced plans that would require pension and mutual funds to bolster their purchases of shares in hopes of propping up market values. Additionally, they encouraged publicly listed companies to initiate more stock buybacks and increase dividends to boost returns for shareholders, as stated by Wu Qing, head of the China Securities Regulatory Commission.
On the ground in China, stock prices in Shanghai experienced a rise of 0.5%, closing at 3,230.16. Conversely, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index saw a decline of 0.4%, finishing at 19,700.56 after initially opening higher.
Ipek Ozkardeskaya from Swissquote Bank remarked on the fluctuations, indicating that the relief experienced over the lack of new tariffs on China from U.S. President Donald Trump was short-lived. Despite Trump’s intent to impose a 10% tariff on imports from China, Ozkardeskaya pointed out that the prevailing sentiment among investors remained bearish for the Chinese market.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 climbed by 0.8% to 39,958.87, driven by strong performances from technology stocks, including SoftBank Group Corp. The company is making significant investments in Stargate, a venture announced by the White House to develop data centers and energy sources necessary for advancing artificial intelligence technologies.
This partnership involving Oracle, OpenAI, and SoftBank is projected to invest up to $500 billion, resulting in a 5.1% increase in SoftBank’s stock on Thursday, following an 11% surge the day prior.
In contrast, Fuji Media Holdings suffered a major setback, dropping 7.8% following the retirement announcement of popular TV host Masahiro Nakai amidst sexual assault allegations surfacing within Japan’s entertainment sector, leading to significant advertising losses for the network.
Across Asia, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 experienced a decline of 0.6% to 8,378.70, while South Korea’s Kospi index decreased by 1.2% to 2,515.49. Meanwhile, India’s Sensex rose by 0.3%, while Thailand’s SET index fell by 0.7%.
On the previous day, major tech stocks such as Netflix and Oracle provided a boost to Wall Street amid rising profits and growing excitement around potential AI innovations. Netflix’s shares surged by 9.7% after it reported significant subscriber growth due to live events, adding nearly 19 million new subscribers during the quarter.
On the U.S. stock front, Oracle gained 6.8%, while Nvidia continued to see growth with a 4.4% increase, benefiting from the AI surge. The S&P 500 gained 0.6%, Dow rose by 0.3%, and Nasdaq composite jumped 1.3%, despite broader declines in the overall market linked to increasing Treasury yields.
In the cryptocurrency sector, amid rising hopes for a friendlier regulatory environment under Trump, Bitcoin traded just above $102,000, reaching a high of over $109,000 earlier in the week. Nevertheless, there remains some skepticism as Trump and his wife have recently introduced meme coins, prompting criticism regarding their motives.
In early Thursday trading, the price of U.S. benchmark crude oil decreased by 16 cents to $75.28 per barrel, while Brent crude fell by 13 cents to $78.87 per barrel. The dollar’s value increased against the Japanese yen, moving to 156.53 from 156.43, while the euro dipped to $1.0398 from $1.0411.
