Brief
Asian markets mixed as tech volatility persists and oil drops after Trump waives Russia sanctions
Tech stocks stayed volatile and oil prices slid after President Donald Trump signed an order pausing broad sanctions on Russia.
By Felo News Desk · Published
Asian shares were mixed on Monday, with technology stocks remaining volatile and oil prices falling more than 1% after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order pausing sweeping sanctions on Russia, including on Russian energy, according to the Independent.
What happened
South Korea’s Kospi index rose 1.1% to 5,729.58 after a sharp fall the previous week, though it remains down over 18% for the month and well below its June peak near 9,000. Samsung Electronics gained 0.7% while SK Hynix slipped 0.9%.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.8% to 64,799.03. Tokyo Electron, a chip‑equipment maker, dropped 2.1% and SoftBank Group, an OpenAI investor, fell 3.6%.
Hong Kong’s market was closed for a holiday. Shanghai’s Composite edged up 0.2% to 3,722.20 after China reported 4.5% GDP growth for the July‑September quarter. China’s leading memory chipmaker CXMT fell more than 7% despite a strong profit forecast for the first nine months.
Taiwan’s Taiex slipped 1%; TSMC shares were down 0.6%. Australia’s ASX 200 rose 0.3% to 8,832.20. India’s Sensex edged down 0.1%.
Indonesia’s benchmark index fell another 5% to its lowest level since 2020 after MSCI warned of a downgrade from emerging‑market status.
What the reports add
The Independent noted that U.S. equity futures were edging higher ahead of a week of corporate earnings, with investors watching results from Meta, Netflix, General Motors, Tesla and IBM. It also highlighted that oil’s decline came after Trump’s order put new broad U.S. sanctions against Russia on hold, a move that disappointed Ukraine and could boost Russian energy exports.
What was said
The article quoted the executive order as “putting new broad U.S. sanctions against Russia on hold,” and referenced Trump’s earlier claim of a diesel deal with Russia aimed at lowering U.S. fuel prices ahead of the November 3 midterm elections.
How it came about
Earlier this week, Trump signed the waiver on October 16, defending it as a peace‑building measure, while Ukrainian officials warned it would aid Russia’s war effort. The market reaction follows a period of AI‑driven tech stock volatility and rising concerns over oil‑supply risks in the Middle East.
Key facts
- South Korea's Kospi rose 1.1% to 5,729.58, still down 18% for the month (independent.co.uk)
- Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.8% to 64,799.03 (independent.co.uk)
- Oil prices dropped more than 1%, with Brent at $107.86 per barrel (independent.co.uk)
- President Donald Trump signed an executive order waiving new Russian sanctions on October 16 (independent.co.uk)
- Indonesia's index fell another 5% after MSCI warned of an emerging‑market downgrade (independent.co.uk)
Sources
- [1] independent.co.uk — originally reported as “Asian shares are mixed with tech stocks volatile, and oil falls on Trump's Russian sanctions waiver”
