Finance1 min read

Global Market Today: Asian shares edge higher as investors assess tech earnings, Fed outlook

By · Published by Everything Blog

In short

Asian equities climbed 0.3% behind gains in Japan’s Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s Kospi, even as U.S. futures fell due to a 10% post-market drop in Alphabet shares. In contrast, Microsoft and Oracle advanced on strong cloud revenue and optimistic cash flow projections. Meanwhile, heavy artificial intelligence funding pushed annual global bond issuance to a record $6.61 trillion amid shifting central bank expectations.

Key points

  • Diverging earnings outcomes among major technology firms are creating uneven performance…: Diverging earnings outcomes among major technology firms are creating uneven performance across global equity sectors.
  • Adjustments to the Federal Reserve voting schedule are driving downward movement in both…: Adjustments to the Federal Reserve voting schedule are driving downward movement in both short-dated Treasury yields and the dollar.
  • Elevated commodity prices remain supported by Middle East tensions as American crude trad…: Elevated commodity prices remain supported by Middle East tensions as American crude trades near $102 a barrel and gold approaches $4,065 an ounce.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

Listen to this article in summarized format

Nasdaq 100 Index futures dropped 0.9% and contracts for the S&P 500 slipped 0.4% as Alphabet slumped 10% in extended trading after the Google parent’s sales underwhelmed. MSCI Inc.’s Asia Pacific equities gauge climbed 0.3%, led by gains in Japan’s Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s Kospi indexes.

Sentiment elsewhere held up, with Microsoft Corp. shares rising 2.8% in after-hours trading on solid cloud sales, while Oracle Corp. earlier surged 11% after issuing a long-term outlook for free cash flow. A gauge of Oracle’s credit risk improved the most in nearly nine months.

“The divergence in after-hours trading between Alphabet and Microsoft shares highlights growing scrutiny of how big tech companies are funding their ambitious data center build-outs,” said Hugh Lam, a Sydney-based investment strategist at Betashares Capital Ltd.

Read more: Sebi to review FPI rules, align with global norms

Meanwhile, yields on short-dated Treasuries fell after the Federal Reserve held off on raising interest rates while signaling fewer policy-setting meetings next year, leaving traders recalibrating bets on the central bank’s rate path. The…

Finance

More in Finance