Session at a Glance

Chip selloff hammers Nikkei and Korea while China stimulus hopes lift Hong Kong and Shanghai.

A global semiconductor rout dominated the Asia-Pacific week. Tokyo Electron and chip-equipment peers dragged the Nikkei down 3.3% as investors questioned whether AI-related capex is peaking, while Kia’s earnings miss compounded Korea’s 1.9% KOSPI decline. India’s Nifty shed 2.3% after HDFC Bank’s disappointing Q1 profit triggered a broad financials selloff.

China was the clear outlier. Stimulus expectations lifted Hong Kong’s Hang Seng 1.6% and the Shanghai Composite 1.3% after Q2 GDP printed at just 4.3%, stoking hopes for further PBoC easing. Taiwan’s TAIEX rallied 2.3%, led by MediaTek’s limit-up surge on its Nvidia RTX Spark partnership.

The through-line: markets with heavy chip exposure split sharply — AI beneficiaries like MediaTek and Naver rallied on product catalysts, while capital-equipment names like Tokyo Electron bore the brunt of rotation out of peak-spend anxiety.

Here are the biggest movers across Asia-Pacific’s major exchanges for the week ending Saturday, July 25, grouped by market — each figure is the stock’s move over the full trading week.

Australia (ASX)

↑ NST +3.59%

Mid-cap · 19.93 (local)

Why: Northern Star benefited from gold prices holding near record highs as geopolitical tensions and Middle East uncertainty sustained safe-haven demand through the week.

Pattern: Gold miners have tracked bullion’s multi-month uptrend — NST’s 3.6% weekly gain is momentum continuation within a broader commodity-driven sector bid, not an isolated breakout.

↓ CSL -7.38%

Mega-cap · 114.2 (local)

Why: CSL extended its troubled 2026 run, still digesting a ~US$5 billion impairment charge, CEO departure, and deferred demerger — no fresh catalyst, but sentiment remains fragile ahead of August FY26 results.

Pattern: Down 7.4% on the week despite no new headlines — this looks like resumed distribution after a short-lived June bounce, with sellers re-engaging below the recovery highs.

Hong Kong (HKEX)

↑ 2628 +7.40%

Mid-cap · 28.44 (local)

Why: China Life surged after issuing H1 2026 profit guidance projecting a 215-235% year-on-year net profit increase, driven by investment gains and wealth reallocation into insurance products.

Pattern: Strong earnings catalyst on top of a sector re-rating in Chinese insurers — breakout move with fundamental backing, part of the broader China stimulus-hope bid across Hong Kong.

↓ 9999 -7.45%

Mid-cap · 187.7 (local)

Why: NetEase was caught in a China tech rotation as funds shifted from gaming into AI plays; Tencent fell 7% on gaming revenue fears and NetEase declined in sympathy amid sector-wide risk-off.

Pattern: Sector rotation away from China gaming into AI infrastructure names — NetEase’s 7.5% weekly drop is thematic, not company-specific, and part of a broader Hang Seng Tech selloff in non-AI tech.

China — Shanghai (SSE)

↑ 601857 +7.19%

Large-cap · 11.03 (local)

Why: PetroChina rallied as oil prices firmed on Middle East tensions and investors rotated into state-owned energy names as a defensive play amid China’s policy-easing expectations.

Pattern: SOE energy names have re-rated on dividend yield plus policy tailwinds — the 7.2% weekly move is momentum continuation within a multi-quarter uptrend in high-dividend A-shares.

China — Shenzhen (SZSE)

↑ 002415 +7.06%

Mid-cap · 35.49 (local)

Why: Hikvision gained as China’s domestic AI and surveillance sector benefited from Beijing’s stimulus hopes and technology self-sufficiency push, attracting onshore fund inflows.

Pattern: Part of the broader China tech-with-policy-backing bid — Hikvision’s 7.1% weekly gain is sector rotation into AI-adjacent domestic champions, amplified by the stimulus narrative.

↓ 002594 -1.69%

Large-cap · 91.89 (local)

Why: BYD dipped modestly despite strong EV delivery momentum, weighed by intensifying global EV price competition and Tesla’s post-earnings tumble creating sector overhang.

Pattern: A shallow 1.7% weekly pullback within a strong uptrend — this reads as consolidation and profit-taking rather than trend reversal, with the broader EV sector digesting Tesla’s weak Q2.

Japan (TSE)

↑ 8306 +3.44%

Large-cap · 3754 (local)

Why: Mitsubishi UFJ gained on news highlighting its data-center financing expansion, reinforcing the thesis that Japanese megabanks benefit from rising rates and infrastructure lending growth.

Pattern: Banks outperformed as a relative-value play while tech sold off — MUFG’s 3.4% weekly gain reflects sector rotation into financials, a recurring pattern during chip selloff weeks in Tokyo.

↓ 8035 -11.61%

Mid-cap · 6.266e+04 (local)

Why: Tokyo Electron plunged 11.6% as the global chip-equipment selloff intensified on fears that hyperscaler AI capex may be peaking, with US trade restriction rumors adding pressure.

Pattern: Momentum breakdown and technical correction — the Nikkei’s most chip-sensitive large cap led the index lower, confirming the semiconductor rotation as the week’s dominant Asia-Pacific theme.

Singapore (SGX)

↑ D05 +2.75%

Mega-cap · 73.94 (local)

Why: DBS Group edged higher as Southeast Asian banks benefited from stable rate expectations and regional fund flows seeking yield outside of the volatile North Asian tech complex.

Pattern: Steady grind higher within a multi-month uptrend — DBS’s 2.8% weekly gain is low-volatility momentum continuation in a defensive yield name, consistent with risk-off rotation.

↓ C6L -1.31%

Mid-cap · 7.55 (local)

Why: Singapore Airlines drifted lower on no specific catalyst — travel demand remains solid but jet fuel costs rose on the week amid Middle East tensions, pressuring airline margins.

Pattern: Mild 1.3% weekly decline looks like noise within a range-bound consolidation — no breakout or breakdown, just macro headwind drift on fuel costs.

South Korea (KOSPI)

↑ 035420 +9.21%

Mid-cap · 2.075e+05 (local)

Why: Naver surged 9.2% as President Lee’s push to open a new AI era with global tech companies renewed momentum in domestic AI plays, building on Naver’s existing Nvidia partnership.

Pattern: Policy catalyst layered on top of the Nvidia AI-factory partnership from June — breakout move driven by government backing, making Naver the AI counter-narrative to Korea’s broader chip weakness.

↓ 000270 -12.83%

Mid-cap · 1.305e+05 (local)

Why: Kia plunged 12.8% after Q2 operating profit fell 4.9% to ₩2.63 trillion, missing consensus by ~₩170 billion, as warranty costs and US incentive spending pressured margins.

Pattern: Earnings-driven gap down — classic post-results selloff on margin compression, amplified by the broader KOSPI weakness and Hyundai’s simultaneous decline in the auto sector.

Taiwan (TWSE)

↑ 2454 +11.28%

Large-cap · 3750 (local)

Why: MediaTek surged 11.3% after Nvidia announced the RTX Spark system co-developed with MediaTek at SIGGRAPH 2026, reigniting the AI edge-device thesis for Taiwan’s IC design leader.

Pattern: Product-catalyst breakout from a six-week correction — hit limit-up with stacked buy orders, signaling strong conviction that the AI hardware cycle extends to edge silicon, not just data-center chips.

↓ 3711 -0.16%

Mid-cap · 613 (local)

Why: ASE Technology was essentially flat on the week — no company-specific catalyst, with semiconductor OSAT demand stable but investor attention drawn to higher-beta chip design names instead.

Pattern: Near-zero weekly move while peers rallied double digits — relative underperformance suggests rotation within Taiwan semis from packaging/testing into AI design names like MediaTek.

India (NSE)

↑ HINDUNILVR +3.02%

Large-cap · 2162 (local)

Why: Hindustan Unilever gained 3% as defensive consumer staples attracted flows amid the HDFC Bank-led financial selloff, with investors rotating into names with stable rural demand recovery.

Pattern: Classic risk-off rotation into consumer defensives — HUL outperformed as the Nifty dropped 2.3%, a textbook sector-rotation pattern during Indian banking earnings disappointments.

↓ HDFCBANK -9.37%

Mega-cap · 742.8 (local)

Why: HDFC Bank fell 9.4% after Q1 FY27 profit missed estimates at ₹19,060 crore while net interest income also disappointed, as weaker margins offset 15.4% loan growth.

Pattern: Earnings-driven gap down in India’s largest private bank — the NIM compression narrative triggered broad financial-sector selling that dragged the entire Nifty lower for the week.

New Zealand (NZX)

↑ AIR +4.82%

Large-cap · 0.435 (local)

Why: Air New Zealand gained 4.8% as travel demand into the southern-hemisphere winter season held firm, with the airline benefiting from reduced trans-Tasman competition and improving load factors.

Pattern: Bounce from depressed levels — AIR.NZ trades below NZ$0.50 and the 4.8% pop looks like mean-reversion within a wider bottoming pattern rather than a trend change.

↓ FPH -1.28%

Large-cap · 39.42 (local)

Why: Fisher & Paykel Healthcare drifted 1.3% lower with no specific catalyst — the medtech name gave back gains in a quiet week for NZX healthcare amid broader regional risk-off sentiment.

Pattern: Minor weekly pullback within a stable long-term uptrend — no pattern break, just low-volume drift consistent with profit-taking in a defensive NZX large cap.

Reading the Week

The exchange-by-exchange breakdown above surfaces both market-specific catalysts and cross-border themes. When multiple exchanges move together, look for a macro driver (USD move, commodity price, risk-on/off shift). Isolated single-exchange moves tend to reflect local earnings, regulatory news, or sector rotation.

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