Trade Secrets

WTF Dailies September 1, 2025

Most Asian stock markets dropped on Monday, with Japan and South Korea leading losses on Wall Street tech weakness, while Hong Kong climbed after a private survey showed Chinese factory activity rebounding.

Sage Kakkat

31 Aug 2025 — 4 min read

Most Asian stock markets dropped on Monday, with Japan and South Korea leading losses on Wall Street tech weakness, while Hong Kong climbed after a private survey showed Chinese factory activity rebounding.
The slide followed Friday’s losses on Wall Street, where tech-heavy sectors underperformed, prompting a regional sell-off in Asian tech-linked equities.
Investors remained cautious ahead of upcoming U.S. labour and macroeconomic data, alongside ongoing trade and tariff-related uncertainties.
U.S. stock index futures edged higher in Asia hours on Monday.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index slipped around 2% in early trade, weighed down by declines in heavyweight exporters and tech-related names.
Japan’s broader TOPIX index traded 0.8% lower.
In South Korea, the KOSPI also gave up ground, falling 1.1%.
Last week, the U.S. revoked approvals for Samsung and SK Hynix to obtain semiconductor equipment for their China chip plants.
Elsewhere, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.7%.
Singapore’s Straits Times Index was largely unchanged, while India’s Nifty 50 gained 0.4%.
A private survey on Monday showed that China’s factory activity expanded at the fastest pace in five months in August amid easing U.S.-China trade worries.
The figures contrasted an official reading, showing a fifth consecutive contraction in August, but sparked optimism.
The Shanghai Composite index gained 0.1%, while the Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 was largely unchanged.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index notably jumped about 2%, outperforming regional peers, as investors interpreted the PMI rebound as a potential early signal of reviving Chinese industrial demand.

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