Asia stocks begin year on cautious note

Hong Kong: The new year isn’t kicking off too brightly for Asian stocks. They’re mostly in the red, following a rough start for Wall Street. Concerns about US interest rates and China’s economy are weighing heavily on investors.

Last year was a wild ride, with stocks generally doing well thanks to excitement around AI and some central banks cutting borrowing costs. The Dow was up about 13%, while tech-heavy indexes like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq saw even bigger gains.

But as we rolled into 2025, US stocks took a hit just before the New Year’s holiday. The Dow dipped a bit, and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq followed suit. Meanwhile, shares in Hong Kong and China fell, while Japan’s market is still closed until Monday.

On a brighter note, Australia and South Korea saw some gains, thanks to positive signals from US equity futures. However, South Korea is dealing with political drama, as impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol is resisting arrest. He’s claiming the country is facing threats from both inside and outside.

In Japan, Nippon Steel is trying to save its takeover of US Steel, but they haven’t commented yet. US Steel shares jumped after reports about this surfaced.

So, it’s a mixed bag as we step into the new year, with a lot of eyes on how these economic factors will play out.