Key insights
- Asian stocks were mixed as disappointing results from Alphabet and a sell-off in Samsung Electronics weighed on tech shares. Alphabet's shares fell after missing expectations and signaling heavy AI infrastructure spending. Samsung's stock dropped despite record earnings due
Investing.com-- Asian stocks were mixed on Thursday, as disappointing results from Alphabet and a sell-off in Samsung Electronics weighed on technology shares, while investors awaited earnings from Amazon and Intel for further clues on the outlook for artificial intelligence investment.
U.S. stock index futures also fell in Asian trading Thursday, with Nasdaq 100 Futures sliding 1.2%. Wall Street ended slightly higher overnight.
Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) shares slumped about 10% in after-hours U.S. trading after the company reported results that fell short of expectations and signalled heavy spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure. Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), by contrast, gained about 3% after its results showed stronger-than-expected cash flow.
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South Korea’s KOSPI ended 1.2% lower after falling as much as 3% earlier in the day.
Samsung Electronics (KS:005930) shares dropped nearly 4% despite the company reporting record third-quarter earnings, as investors focused on a miss in semiconductor profit expectations and uncertainty over additional shareholder returns.
Investors were also disappointed that Samsung did not provide immediate details of additional shareholder returns, with the company saying it would finalise its next policy in January. Its mobile business recorded an operating loss of 800 billion won as higher memory costs squeezed profitability.
Samsung warned that AI-driven memory demand would outstrip industry supply in 2027 and projected semiconductor capital expenditure of 76.8 trillion won this year, up 62% from 2025.
The decline followed a rally of nearly 7% in the KOSPI on Wednesday, when SK Hynix (KS:000660) surged 11% after reporting a stronger-than-expected profit and announcing a 100 trillion won ($75 billion) shareholder-return plan. SK Hynix shares rose a further 2.6% on Thursday.
Elsewhere, China’s Shanghai Composite fell 0.8% and the blue-chip Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 index slipped 1%, with chip stocks leading losses.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.5%, with its Hang Seng TECH sub-index sliding 2.6%.
Among gainers, Japan’s Nikkei 225 edged 1% higher, while the broader TOPIX index gained 0.3%.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.5%, while Singapore’s Straits Times Index edged up 0.2%.
India’s Nifty 50 index rose 0.6%.
Investors were also preparing for the Bank of Japan’s policy decision on Friday, after its two-day meeting began on Thursday.
The central bank is widely expected to keep its policy rate at 1.25%, following a rate increase in September, while potentially raising its inflation forecasts as higher oil prices and a weak yen add to price pressures.
Markets will scrutinise Governor Kazuo Ueda’s comments for clues on whether the BOJ could raise rates again as soon as December.
The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady on Wednesday, although two policymakers voted in favour of a rate increase.
Markets were pricing in roughly a 78% chance of a U.S. rate increase in December, according to CME FedWatch, leaving investors sensitive to incoming inflation data. September’s U.S. personal consumption expenditures price index, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, is due on Friday.
Attention later shifts to Amazon and Intel, whose results and guidance will help investors assess whether strong AI demand can sustain the enormous spending on data centres, chips and cloud infrastructure.
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