HONG KONG – Asian markets and U.S. stock futures moved unevenly Thursday as weakness in several major technology shares followed disappointing earnings from Google parent Alphabet.
The Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged at the conclusion of its policy meeting Wednesday, as expected. Two Fed officials supported a rate increase, and analysts said a December hike remains likely because inflation is still running too high.
Investors are also awaiting the European Central Bank’s decision later Thursday. The Bank of Japan is widely expected to keep its policy unchanged when its meeting ends Friday.
Oil prices dropped more than 1% despite warnings from U.S. officials that renewed military action against Iran could begin after the Nov. 3 midterm elections.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.2% in Asian trading to 64,073.17. Shares of SoftBank Group, an investor in OpenAI, slipped 0.5%.
South Korea’s Kospi fell 2.2% to 5,880.25.
Samsung Electronics, one of the Korean market’s largest components, plunged 5.4% even after reporting strong quarterly results. Investors were disappointed by details of its latest shareholder-return policy. Memory-chip producer SK Hynix gained 1.6%, following a 10.9% surge the previous day after it posted better-than-expected quarterly results.
Taiwan’s Taiex, another major beneficiary of the artificial intelligence boom, declined 1.9%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index edged up less than 0.1% to 23,101.86, while the Shanghai Composite fell 0.9% to 3,647.12.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 advanced 0.5% to 8,888.50.
Recent earnings reports from the world’s biggest technology companies have unsettled markets, where valuations reflect investors’ elevated expectations surrounding the global artificial intelligence boom.
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Alphabet shares dropped about 10% in after-hours trading. The California-based company reported quarterly revenue that fell short of investor expectations, fueling concerns about whether its sales can support the enormous cost of its AI investments.
Microsoft shares moved nearly 3% higher after hours after the company delivered better-than-expected earnings.
On Wednesday, the S&P 500 rose 0.3%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.2%. The technology-focused Nasdaq composite also gained 0.3%.
In the bond market, the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield slipped below 5.00% after briefly reaching about 5.04% Wednesday. The two-year Treasury yield steadied at 4.68%, down from above 4.77% the previous day.
Brent crude, the international benchmark, fell 1.2% early Thursday to $110.32 a barrel. The price remains well above the roughly $72 level recorded before the Iran war began in late February.
U.S. benchmark crude declined 1.3% to $101.46 a barrel.
The U.S. dollar weakened to 157.72 Japanese yen from 157.84 yen. The euro traded at $1.1146, down from $1.1154.
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AP Business Writer Stan Choe contributed to this report.
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