Asian markets made a bright start to 2026 on Friday, but volumes were thin with Tokyo and Shanghai still closed as investors awaited fresh direction from Wall Street.
Stocks had a bumper 2025, with the S&P adding 16.4 per cent, the tech-rich Nasdaq 20.4 per cent, and London’s FTSE enjoying its merriest Christmas in 16 years.
In Asia, Seoul stocks whooshed 75 per cent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index bounced 28 per cent and Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 rocketed more than 26 percent.
“Naturally, the start of the new year comes with the question everyone asks moving from one year to the next: Will this continue? The consensus is that, yes, it will,” said Kyle Rodda at Australian brokerage Capital.com.
“When it comes to the all-important US economy, Wall Street is pricing in growth will accelerate this year while inflation still moderates and interest rates get cut. Meanwhile, analysts predict that corporate fundamentals will improve,” Rodda said.
Hong Kong was up 2.2 per cent Friday with chip designer Biren Technologies roaring 80 percent higher after its initial public offering.
The Shanghai-based firm’s listing raised more than $700 million, suggesting that investor appetite for anything related to artificial intelligence remains insatiable.
Biren “enjoys scarcity value and high market attention,” said Kenny Ng, a strategist at China Everbright Securities.
“The industry is in a flourishing stage, with many firms striving for breakthroughs and significant growth potential,” Ng said.
Search-engine giant Baidu jumped almost seven percent after saying its AI chip unit Kunlunxin had filed a listing application in Hong Kong.
Taipei, Sydney, Jakarta, Manila, and Singapore also advanced, while Seoul’s Kospi, which soared 76 percent in 2025 in large part due to AI boom, was up 1.7 percent.
Samsung Electronics added three percent after co-CEO Jun Young Hyun said customers had praised its high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips, some saying that “Samsung is back”, Bloomberg News reported.
After volatile recent days, following record highs for silver, precious metals started the new year on a bright note, with gold up 0.64 percent per ounce and silver 1.5 percent shinier.
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Key Figures At Around 0430 GMT –
Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 2.2 percent at 26,189.79
Shanghai – market closed for holiday
Tokyo – market closed for holiday
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1757 from $1.1750 on Wednesday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3480 from $1.3478
Dollar/yen: UP at 156.84 from 156.66 yen
Euro/pound: UP at 87.22 pence from 87.18 pence
Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.5 per cent at $61.17 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.6 per cent at $57.74 per barrel
New York – Dow: DOWN 0.6 per cent at 48,063.29 points (close)
London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.1 per cent at 9,931.38 (close)
AFP
