Kospi Falls to 5,883.58, While Nikkei Closes Higher as Asian Markets Diverge

Key Facts

Asian markets were mixed on October 29, with the Kospi closing at 5,883.58 points and the Nikkei 225 ending the session at 64,208.86 points. EL7 data show the South Korean index closed below 6,000 points, compared with 6,012.44 points the previous day. The Nikkei rose from a close of 63,954.19 points on October 28. In its report on Asian trading, the Associated Press said the Kospi fell 2.2% to 5,880.25 points and the Nikkei rose 0.2% to 64,073.17 points. The figures reflect a difference between the trading levels reported by the agency and EL7's closing levels for the two indexes.

Samsung Electronics shares were among the biggest sources of pressure on the South Korean market, falling 5.4% in Thursday trading despite the company's report of strong quarterly results. The Associated Press attributed investors' reaction to disappointment among some over the shareholder-return policy arrangements the company announced. The decline followed Samsung's report of consolidated revenue of 195.3 trillion won in the third quarter, up 14% from the previous quarter. Operating profit was 107.4 trillion won, according to the company's statement for the quarter ended September 30. Samsung also said revenue reached a quarterly record, but the results did not prevent the stock from falling.

In contrast to Samsung, SK Hynix shares rose 1.6% in Asian trading. The stock had jumped 10.9% the previous day after the company reported better-than-expected quarterly results, according to the Associated Press. Samsung said sales in its Device Solutions division rose 15% quarter on quarter in the third quarter. It added that the memory business posted record quarterly revenue and profit, with its product mix focused on artificial intelligence applications. The company also said it had expanded sales of fourth-generation high-bandwidth memory chips amid strong demand linked to AI applications.

The divergence extended to other Asian markets in the agency's report: the Hang Seng rose less than 0.1% to 23,101.86 points, while the Shanghai Composite fell 0.9% to 3,647.12 points. Taiwan's Taiex declined 1.9%, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.5% to 8,888.50 points. The agency said Asian shares and U.S. futures moved in mixed directions, under pressure from some major technology stocks. It linked the moves to weaker-than-expected revenue from Google parent Alphabet. Alphabet shares fell about 10% in after-hours trading, while Microsoft shares rose nearly 3% after better-than-expected results.

The moves in Asia followed a U.S. session with modest gains on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq each up 0.3% and the Dow Jones up 0.2%, according to the Associated Press. In a decision issued on October 28, the Federal Reserve left monetary policy unchanged, with Lisa Cook and Beth Hammack dissenting in favor of raising the target range. The Fed's statement said inflation remained elevated. It added that the accumulation of more information would help the committee determine the appropriate policy stance to ensure inflation returns to its 2% target in a timely manner. The vote highlighted divisions within the committee over the appropriate next step, as markets awaited further data.

Oil fell early Thursday, with Brent crude down 1.2% to $110.32 a barrel and U.S. crude down 1.3% to $101.46. The Associated Press said Brent remained well above its approximate level of $72 a barrel before the Iran war broke out in late February. In semiconductors, Samsung said its foundry business recorded a marked improvement in revenue and profit in the third quarter. The company attributed this to growth in sales of high-bandwidth memory base dies and an expansion in advanced-node sales. It expects investment in AI infrastructure to continue in the fourth quarter, with memory demand tied to new processor platforms growing.

Investors will next turn their attention to the Bank of Japan, which holds its monetary policy meeting on October 29 and 30. The policy statement and outlook report on the economy and prices are scheduled for release on October 30, according to the bank's calendar. The bank currently aims to keep its overnight interest rate near 1.25%, the prevailing level and not an announced outcome of the meeting. The Associated Press said market watchers it cited expect policy to remain unchanged when the meeting concludes on Friday. In its business outlook, Samsung said capital spending on AI infrastructure could reach a historic level in 2027, and that AI-driven demand growth would exceed industry supply compared with 2026.