Asia report: Most markets rise on political, trade optimism
By Josh White
Date: Tuesday 21 Oct 2025
(Sharecast News) - Asia-Pacific equities advanced on Tuesday, supported by gains across Japan, China and Australia, as political developments in Tokyo and renewed optimism around critical minerals trade buoyed investor sentiment.
"Global stocks continued their upward momentum, with Asian markets climbing to record levels," said Patrick Munnelly at TickMill.
"Easing trade tensions and growing optimism about potential interest rate cuts fuelled positive sentiment among investors.
"MSCI's regional stock index broke its previous record, while Chinese stocks extended their rally ahead of a potential trade deal with the US."
Most regional bourses finish higher
In Japan, the benchmark Nikkei 225 pared early gains but still closed 0.33% higher at 49,237.45 after touching fresh record highs.
The rally cooled as hardline conservative Sanae Takaichi secured 237 votes in the 465-seat lower house to become Japan's first female prime minister, according to NHK.
Munnelly noted that "Japanese equities took a hit after pro-stimulus candidate Sanae Takaichi secured a key vote to become prime minister".
Tech and internet names led the market, with DeNa up 6.62%, Zozo rising 4.12% and Renesas Electronics advancing 4.07%.
The broader Topix index added 0.03% to 3,249.50.
Chinese stocks extended their rebound, lifted by energy and industrial names.
The Shanghai Composite rose 1.36% to 3,916.33, while the Shenzhen Component jumped 2.06% to 13,077.32.
Bestsun Energy, Henan Dayou Energy and CITIC Heavy Industries each climbed more than 10% as traders bet on sustained policy support for manufacturing.
Munnelly said, "China's third-quarter GDP grew 4.8% year-on-year, exceeding expectations, with 1.1% quarter-on-quarter growth driven by strong industrial production and exports.
"Retail sales slowed to 3.0% year-on-year, and investment fell to -0.5% year-on-year.
"Despite hitting the 5.0% GDP target, growth remains unbalanced, with domestic pressures evident in deflation ... and a struggling housing market."
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gained 0.65% to 26,027.55, boosted by a 6.04% rise in China Life Insurance and gains of 3.77% and 3.7% for BYD Electronic International and Techtronic Industries respectively.
Munnelly added that "robust corporate profits are adding momentum to a tech-driven surge, bolstered by investor anticipation of a Federal Reserve interest rate cut later this month as US-China trade relations show signs of improvement".
In South Korea, the Kospi 100 dipped 0.04% to 4,057.37 as investors booked profits following recent highs.
Mirae Asset Daewoo Securities slid 4.95%, Sam Yang Foods lost 4.42%, and LG Display dropped 3.03%.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.7% to 9,094.70 after earlier enthusiasm over a new critical minerals pact between Canberra and Washington lifted rare earth shares.
"Shares of rare-earth companies surged following a US-Australia partnership, although gold prices remained near historic highs," Munnelly noted.
Gains later faded, but Hub24 still advanced 10.63%, Mesoblast rose 9.4% and DroneShield added 8.72%.
In New Zealand, the S&P/NZX 50 edged up 0.25% to 13,377.85, supported by Eroad, Meridian Energy and Contact Energy, which rose 2.78%, 1.89% and 1.64% respectively.
In currency markets, the US dollar strengthened, rising 0.79% against the yen to JPY 151.94, 0.45% versus the Australian dollar to AUD 1.5424, and 0.53% against the New Zealand dollar to NZD 1.7501.
Oil prices climbed, with Brent crude futures were last up 0.84% on ICE at $61.52 per barrel, as the NYMEX quote for West Texas Intermediate gained 0.92% to $58.05.
NZ trade deficit widens in September
In economic news, New Zealand's trade deficit widened in September as import growth continued to outpace exports, despite strong global demand for the country's goods.
Statistics New Zealand reported a monthly shortfall of NZD 1.4bn, compared with a NZD 1.2bn deficit in August, though the figure came in better than forecasts of NZD 6bn.
Exports rose 19% year-on-year to NZD 5.8bn, reflecting robust demand across all major trading partners.
Shipments to China surged 24%, exports to Australia jumped 28%, and sales to Japan increased 23%, while exports to the United States and the European Union climbed 10% and 15%, respectively.
Imports grew at a slower pace, up 1.6% year-on-year to NZD 7.2bn.
Purchases from China advanced 16%, while imports from the EU and Australia rose 7.3% and 6.4%.
The gains were partly offset by a 30% drop in imports from the United States and a 4.8% decline from South Korea.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
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