economy
January 8, 2026
Asia-Pacific markets mostly fall as Trump rattles defense firms and oil prices slide
Overnight, the S&P 500 and the Down Jones Industrial Average snapped a three-day winning streak.
TL;DR
- Asia-Pacific markets mostly fell, mirroring Wall Street's decline due to geopolitical tensions and Trump's comments.
- U.S. defense stocks dropped after Trump vowed to block dividends and buybacks until industry issues are resolved.
- Oil prices decreased amid concerns of increased global supply following Trump's statement about Venezuela releasing crude.
- Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 1.63%, with SoftBank and Tokyo Electron among the biggest decliners.
- Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.29%, though BlueScope Steel shares fell after rejecting a takeover bid.
- Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 1.59%, led by basic materials and technology stocks.
- Zhipu (Knowledge Atlas Technology JSC) shares rose 15% on their Hong Kong debut, marking the first Chinese 'AI tiger' to go public.
- India's Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex indices both fell.
- U.S. equity futures were flat after the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average ended a winning streak.
- The Nasdaq Composite gained slightly, boosted by Alphabet's stock jump which surpassed Apple's market cap.
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