Asian markets traded mixed in early deals on Thursday, with the caution amidst soaring crude oil prices and global selloffs in semiconductor and technology stocks. Investor sentiments dulled as US military strikes and a reimposed naval blockade escalated tensions with Iran. South Korea’s KOSPI is trading near a two-month low as Tech and hardware heavyweights took a severe hit. Participants sidelined ahead of the critical quarterly earnings release from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC). Bucking the trend, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng soared in the session.
Hang Seng surged by 473.90 points 1.88% to 25,155.00, Taiwan weighted up by 57.92 points or 0.13% to 45,689.51, Jakarta Composite added by 27.63 points or 0.46% to 6,069.60, and FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI index jumped by 9.88 points or 0.58% to 1,723.64
On the flip side, Nikkei tumbled by 1,646.51 points or 2.39% to 67,105.00, Straits Times down by 29.43 points or 0.53% to 5,530.29, KOSPI Index plunged by 462.28 points or 6.35% to 6,822.13 and Shanghai Composite lower by 32.38 points or 0.82% to 3,923.20
