- Jewish school in Canada hit by gunfire for second time
- With medical report Harris seeks to play health card against Trump
- China-EU EV tariff talks in Brussels end with 'major differences': Beijing
- Buried Nazi past haunts Athens on liberation anniversary
- Harris to release medical report confirming fitness for presidency: campaign
- Nobel prize a timely reminder, Hiroshima locals say
- China offers $325 bn in fiscal stimulus for ailing economy
- Small Quebec company dominates one part of NHL hockey: jerseys
- Boeing to cut 10% of workforce as it sees big Q3 loss
- Want to film in Paris? No sexism allowed
- US, European markets rise as investors weigh rates, earnings
- In Colombia, children trade plastic waste for school supplies
- JPMorgan Chase profits top estimates, bank sees 'resilient' US economy
- Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit
- 'Party atmosphere': Skygazers treated to another aurora show
- Kyrgyzstan opens rare probe into glacier destruction
- European Mediterranean states discuss Middle East, migration
- Thunberg leads pro-Palestinian, climate protest in Milan
- Stock markets diverge before China weekend briefing
- EU questions shopping app Temu over illegal products risk
- Han Kang's books sell out in South Korea after Nobel win
- Shanghai markets sink ahead of briefing on mixed day for Asia
- Investors, analysts eye bigger China stimulus at Saturday briefing
- Musk unveils robotaxi, pledges it 'before 2027'
- At least 11 dead in Florida but Hurricane Milton not as bad as feared
- Asian markets mixed after Wall St drop, Shanghai dips before briefing
- Automaker Stellantis says CEO will retire in 2026
- Musk's promised robotaxi unveil delayed
- On US coast, wind power foes embrace 'Save the Whales' argument
- At least 10 dead in Florida after Hurricane Milton spawns tornadoes
- Internet Archive reels from 'catastrophic' cyberattack, data breach
- Wall Street stocks retreat from records on US inflation data
- Israel strikes central Beirut, killing 22
- Solar storm could impact US hurricane recovery efforts: agency
- Delta eyes Election Day travel pullback as profits climb
- Florida battered by hurricane, floods but spared 'worst-case scenario'
- UK's William and Kate in first joint public engagement since cancer treatment
- Over 200 women in legal talks with Harrods over Fayed abuse claims
- A very stiff breeze: BBC says sorry for 20,000 kph wind forecast
- Musk finally unveiling his long-promised robotaxi
- London's Frieze art fair goes potty for ceramics
- US, Europe stocks fall on US inflation data
- US consumer inflation eases to 2.4% in September
- Hurricane Milton tornadoes kill four in Florida amid rescue efforts
- South Korea's Han Kang wins literature Nobel
- Ikea posts fall in annual sales after lowering prices
- Stock markets diverge, oil gains after China rebounds
- World can't 'waste time' trading climate change blame: COP29 hosts
- South Korean same-sex couples make push for marriage equality
- Mumbai declares day of mourning for Indian industrialist Ratan Tata
Asian stocks rise after shaky start
Asian markets overcame a shaky start to enjoy modest gains on Thursday, bucking a session on Wall Street that saw major indices sink despite a surge in tech.
Blockbuster earnings lifted the tech-heavy Nasdaq on Wednesday, with both Microsoft and Meta soaring after delivering expectation-beating reports, but recession fears and concerns over the banking sector dragged down the Dow and the S&P.
By mid-afternoon in Asia, however, futures for all three indices were comfortably in the green.
Hong Kong, Tokyo and Shanghai were all up on Thursday afternoon as earnings season got into full swing, in spite of lacklustre reports from some major players.
Japan's Nomura bank saw its share price plunge more than seven percent after announcing its profits fell 76 percent to $55.3 million in the last quarter.
South Korean tech giant Samsung reported its worst quarterly profits in 14 years, blaming slowing consumer spending and falling microchip prices.
The company's first-quarter net income fell 86.1 percent to $1.17 billion, and sales dropped 18 percent, though its stock closed 0.78 percent higher.
Japanese airline ANA Holdings, meanwhile, fell 1.54 percent, but said in an announcement after the market closed that it had returned to profit in the year ending in March, rebounding from deep pandemic-related losses.
In Hong Kong, excitement over the IPO of Chinese baijiu maker ZJLD -- the largest debut on the bourse so far this year -- fizzled as its shares tumbled nearly 15 percent by mid-afternoon.
Even so, its roughly $570 million in proceeds was equivalent to more than half of what the Hong Kong stock exchange generated from IPOs in the first quarter of 2023.
Seoul, Taipei, Mumbai, Jakarta, Manila and Kuala Lumpur were all up, while Sydney, Wellington, Bangkok and Singapore were down.
London and Paris were fluctuating in and out of the red in early trade on Thursday, while Frankfurt was down.
Global sentiment was dampened by fears for the health of the banking sector, with investors keeping an eye on the embattled First Republic Bank, which ended nearly 30 percent down on Wednesday after another bruising session.
Those worries, coupled with lacklustre consumer confidence data among other indicators, have deepened fears of a broader recession, as did uncertainty over the US Federal Reserve's next move with regards to its run of inflation-fighting interest rate hikes.
"We cannot rule out the possibility developments around First Republic could unfold in a manner that would lead the (Federal Open Market Committee) to skip May, while signaling a hike in June," Evercore ISI's head of central bank strategy Krishna Guha said in a note.
Investors will also be watching for key figures on US unemployment, GDP and inflation due later this week, as well as the outcome of the Bank of Japan's first policy meeting under new governor Kazuo Ueda, which ends Friday.
- Key figures around 0730 GMT -
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.1 at 19,782.98
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.7 percent at 3285.88 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.2 percent at 28,457.68 (close)
London - FTSE 100: FLAT at 7,853.31
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1051 from $1.1044 on Wednesday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2474 from $1.2409
Dollar/yen: UP at 133.71 yen from 133.67 yen
Euro/pound: UP at 88.60 pence from 88.55 pence
Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.33 percent at $77.97 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.19 percent at $74.43 per barrel
New York - Dow: DOWN 0.7 percent at 33,301.87 (close)
D.Philippon--CPN