San Francisco Frontiers - Asia markets mixed in final day of 2025 trading

NYSE - LSE

RBGPF	0.42%	81.05	$
RYCEF	-0.45%	15.49	$
CMSC	-0.08%	23.051	$
VOD	0.6%	13.23	$
NGG	0.41%	77.77	$
RELX	-0.66%	41.11	$
BTI	0.49%	56.55	$
SCS	0.12%	16.14	$
RIO	0.15%	80.52	$
GSK	0.39%	49.3	$
BP	0.86%	34.75	$
CMSD	0.13%	23.13	$
JRI	0.74%	13.58	$
AZN	-0.01%	92.51	$
BCC	-1%	73.79	$
BCE	0.81%	23.57	$

Asia markets mixed in final day of 2025 trading

POLITICS 31.12.2025

Asia markets mixed in final day of 2025 trading / Photo: © AFP

Asian stocks were mixed at the start of the final trading day of 2025 on Wednesday, with some tracking Wall Street losses as investors eased towards the New Year break.

Text size:

Trading remained thin in the holiday-shortened week, though precious metals appeared to steady after seeing a sharp pullback from recent record highs.

Markets in Hong Kong and Australia edged lower while Shanghai and Taipei saw small morning gains in what has been a strong year for worldwide markets.

The movements came after Wall Street's main indices closed slightly lower on Tuesday as worries over valuations of artificial intelligence (AI) stocks lingered.

Still, US indices remained on track for solid gains over 2025 as a whole, and markets in Asia similarly enjoyed a healthy year.

Seoul's Kospi climbed more than 75 percent and Tokyo's Nikkei 225 more than 26 percent over 2025. Both markets were closed on Wednesday.

Official data showed factory activity in China ticked up slightly in December, a silver lining to an otherwise lacklustre end to the year for the world's second-largest economy.

The Federal Reserve's monetary easing in the second half of this year has been a key driver of the global market improvements, compounding a surge in the tech sector on the back of the vast amounts of cash pumped into AI.

Minutes of the Fed's recent policy meeting in December indicated that most of its officials see future rate cuts as appropriate, if inflation cools over time as expected.

Some of the biggest recent movement has come with precious metals like gold thanks to their status as a safe-haven investment amid geopolitical unrest.

Both gold and silver climbed to records in the past week, though decreased in recent days. Gold sat at about $4,370 per ounce on Wednesday, and silver at $74.96.

- Key figures at around 0230 GMT -

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.8 percent at 25,652.98 (open)

Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 3,974.43 (open)

Tokyo - market closed for holiday

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1740 from $1.1774 on Tuesday

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3462 from $1.3503

Dollar/yen: UP at 156.48 yen from 156.00 yen

Euro/pound: UP at 87.20 pence from 87.15 pence

West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.1 percent at $61.24 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.1 percent at $57.86 per barrel

New York - Dow: DOWN 0.2 percent at 48,367.06 (close)

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.7 percent at 9,940.71 (close)

Z.Phillips--SFF

Featured

Thailand releases 18 Cambodian soldiers held since July

Thailand on Wednesday released 18 Cambodian soldiers captured in July, both governments said, after a fresh ceasefire between the neighbours held for more than three days following weeks of deadly border clashes.

Global 'fragmentation' fuelling world's crises: UN refugee chief

The outgoing United Nations refugee chief fears an increasingly fragmented world is fuelling global conflicts and crises, and inflaming hostility towards people desperately fleeing for safety.

Guinea junta chief Doumboya elected president: election commission

Guinea's junta chief Mamady Doumbouya, who had pledged not to run for office after seizing power four years ago, has been elected president after securing a sweeping majority of the vote, according to initial results by the country's election commission published on Tuesday.

Stocks mixed, silver rebounds as 2025 trading winds down

Stock markets were mixed on Tuesday while silver prices rebounded amid volatile trading in precious metals.