Asia stocks trade lower on Wednesday, mirroring a downbeat session on Wall Street overnight, which fell from record highs amid a pullback in technology stocks, especially those linked to chip making, cloud services, and artificial intelligence. Sentiment was further weighed by political risks in France and Japan and the ongoing U.S. government shutdown. Silver climbed above $48 per ounce on Wednesday, approaching 14-year highs. Gold surpassed $4,000 per ounce on Wednesday, reaching a fresh milestone. New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.3% to close at 13,568 on Wednesday, its highest closing level on record, after the RBNZ slashed its official cash rate by 50bps to 2.50%, the lowest level since July 2022, saying the outsized cut was necessary to revive a weakened economy. Japan ( NKY:IND ) fell 0.27% to 48,100, while the broader Topix Index gained 1% to 3,260 on Wednesday, recovering from the previous session’s losses. The Japanese yen weakened past 152 per dollar on Wednesday, down over 3% so far this week and hitting its lowest level since February, as softer-than-expected wage data dampened prospects for Bank of Japan rate hikes. Japan’s real wages fell 1.4% in August from a year earlier, marking the eighth straight monthly decline as inflation continued to outpace pay growth. Japan’s nominal wages rose 1.5% year-on-year in August 2025, slowing sharply from July’s 3.4% gain and missing forecasts of a 2.6% increase. The Reuters Tankan index for Japanese manufacturers dropped to +8 in October 2025 from a three-year high of +13 in September, marking the first decline in four months. Japan’s service sector index increased to 47.1 in September 2025 from 46.7 in the previous month, marking the highest reading since January and the fifth straight monthly increase and topping market expectations of 47.0. Japan’s current account surplus decreased to JPY 3,775.8 billion in August 2025, down from JPY 3,966.1 billion in the same month a year earlier. China ( SHCOMP ) market closed. The offshore yuan depreciated past 7.15 per dollar on Wednesday, hitting its lowest level in over a month, pressured by a strengthening greenback. The World Bank raised its 2025 growth forecast for China to 4.8% from an earlier estimate of 4.0%, but warned that momentum is likely to slow in 2026 due to low consumer and business confidence and weak new export orders. Markets are now closely watching for developments ahead of the anticipated meeting between President Trump and President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the APEC summit in South Korea, scheduled for October 31 to November 1. Hong Kong ( HSI ) fell 0.93% to 26,721 in Wednesday morning deals, marking a third straight decline as trading resumed after Tuesday’s break. India ( SENSEX ) fell 0.15% to 82,134 in early trade on Wednesday, marking its fifth consecutive session of gains and reaching its highest level since September 22. The Reserve Bank of India on Tuesday proposed changes to the way banks assign risk weightings to loans and implement the Expected Credit Loss framework, in an effort to align domestic regulations with global standards. Investor sentiment was further boosted by a World Bank report raising India’s GDP forecast for FY2025/26 to 6.5% from 6.3%. Australia ( AS51 ) fell 0.10% to around 8,920 in early Wednesday trade, marking its third consecutive session of losses, driven by declines from tech and gold stocks. The Australian dollar weakened to around $0.656 on Wednesday, extending losses from the previous session amid the greenback’s ongoing strength. Private house approvals in Australia fell by 2.6% month-over-month to 9,027 units in August 2025, reversing a 1.3% increase in the previous month. The seasonally adjusted number of total dwellings approved in Australia fell by 6% month-over-month to 14,744 units in August 2025. South Korea warned on Wednesday that the European Commission’s proposal to halve tariff-free steel import quotas and impose a 50% duty on excess shipments could severely impact its steel exports to the EU, its second-largest market. In the U.S. on Tuesday, all three major indexes ended lower , where the S&P 500 snapped a 7-day rally after Oracle tumbled on margin concerns, dragging tech shares lower. Markets now await the FOMC minutes and comments from several Fed officials, including Chair Jerome Powell, for policy cues. U.S. stock futures were little changed on Wednesday, after major indexes slid in the previous session: Dow +0.06% ; S&P 500 +0.07% ; Nasdaq +0.11% . Currencies: ( JPY:USD ), ( CNY:USD ), ( AUD:USD ), ( INR:USD ), ( HKD:USD ), ( NZD:USD ). More on Asia: Japan services sector expands for sixth month, but jobless rate hits 13-month high Australia’s services sector expands for 20th straight month despite sharp slowdown in September Australian trade surplus plunges to seven-year low amid tariff impact, exports tumble 7.8% m/m China's official PMI shows slowed contraction, but private survey signals growth, creating mixed economic picture Bank of Japan signals readiness for more rate hikes, sees tariff impact as temporary growth slowdown
