BANGKOK – As the new year unfolds, Asian markets kicked off Friday on a positive note, showing upward momentum. This optimistic trend was mirrored in U.S. futures and oil prices, which also saw gains.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index surged by 2.2% to reach 26,189.79, buoyed by a robust upswing in technology stocks.

Among the standout performers, Alibaba rose by 3.2%, while Baidu saw an impressive increase of 7.5%. This surge followed Baidu’s announcement of its intention to spin off Kunlunxin, its AI chip subsidiary, with plans for a Hong Kong public listing by early 2027, pending regulatory approval.

Elsewhere, markets in Tokyo, Shanghai, Thailand, and New Zealand remained closed.

Meanwhile, South Korea’s Kospi climbed 1.5% to 4,277.94. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 made a modest gain of 0.2%, settling at 8,727.30.

Taiwan’s Taiex was up 1.1% and the Sensex in India added 0.1%.

Asian shares have been supported by expectations that growth in the use of artificial intelligence will spur demand for computer chips and other items needed to build out data centers and other infrastructure.

Recent manufacturing data for much of the region has been relatively weak, though trade has remained resilient.

“Exports from most countries have surged in recent months, and we think the near-term outlook for Asia’s export-oriented manufacturing sectors remains favorable,” Shivaan Tandon of Capital Economics said in a report.

The future for the S&P 500 was up 0.5% while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.3%.

On Wednesday, U.S. stocks finished 2025 with a fourth day of losses, despite strong gains for the year.

The S&P 500 gave up 0.7% to 6,845.50 and the Dow fell 0.6% to 48,063.29. The Nasdaq composite closed 0.8% lower at 23,241.99.

The S&P 500 set 39 record highs in 2025 and closed 16.4% higher for the year. The Nasdaq gained 20.4% and the Dow finished 13% higher.

Wall Street’s 2025 gains came as investors embraced the optimism surrounding artificial intelligence and its potential for boosting profits across almost all sectors. But the market had no shortage of turbulence along the way amid

President Donald Trump eventually put his on-again, off-again tariffs on imported goods worldwide on pause while negotiating trade deals, helping to calm frayed nerves.

Strong corporate profits and three cuts to interest rates by the Federal Reserve also helped drive markets higher.

Wall Street is betting that the Fed will hold interest rates steady at its next meeting in January.

The Labor Department reported that fewer Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week with layoffs remaining low despite a weakening labor market.

All of the sectors in the S&P 500 closed in the red Wednesday, with technology stocks the biggest drag on the market. Western Digital fell 2.2% and Micron Technology lost 2.5%. Both were among the biggest gainers in the S&P 500 this year.

In other dealings early Friday, silver gained 3.5% after giving back 9.4% on Wednesday. It gained more than 140% in 2025.

Gold picked up 1.1%. It closed out the year with a 63.7% gain.

U.S. benchmark crude gained 35 cents to $57.77 per barrel. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, was up 35 cents at $61.20 per barrel.

The U.S. dollar rose to 156.80 Japanese yen from 156.75 yen. The euro climbed to $1.1760 from $1.1746.