Asian stock markets opened mixed on Thursday, 12 November, before early gains faded in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. Nvidia shares fell more than 8% in US after-hours trading following reports that its board was weighing the future of chief executive Jensen Huang, putting renewed pressure on technology stocks across the region.
Early gains fade in Seoul and Tokyo
South Korea’s Kospi was up 0.2% in early trading after closing 2.6% higher on Wednesday. It later gave up that advance and was little changed at 5,375.63. Taiwan’s Taiex also reversed an early gain of 0.5%, falling 1.2% later in the morning as sentiment towards technology shares weakened.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fluctuated in early trading and was later down 0.1% at 61,224.87. Losses among Japanese electronics manufacturers weighed on the index. Chip-testing equipment maker Advantest fell 3.4% and electronic components maker Murata Manufacturing dropped 2.5% in early dealings, while some chemical companies and trading houses gained.
Hong Kong falls as Shanghai edges higher
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was down 0.9% at 24,088.41 later in the morning, while the Shanghai Composite rose 0.2% to 3,688.05. Hong Kong’s weakness weighed on MSCI’s broad index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan, which slipped 0.1% in early trading and later extended its losses.
The decline in Nvidia came after a stronger session on Wall Street on Wednesday. The S&P 500 rose 1.3% and the Nasdaq gained 1.6% during regular trading, when improving sentiment towards artificial intelligence companies supported US technology stocks. By Thursday’s Asian session, S&P 500 futures were down about 0.4% and Nasdaq futures had fallen about 1%.
Dollar holds near a 19-month high
In currency markets, the US dollar held near its strongest level since April 2025. Traders had increased their bets on a Federal Reserve rate rise in December after stronger-than-expected US inflation data. The yen weakened towards 160 to the dollar, adding another focus for Tokyo investors as they assessed domestic earnings and the decline in US technology futures.
Newshub Editorial in Asia – 12 November 2026
Asian stock markets opened mixed on Thursday, 12 November, before early gains faded in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. Nvidia shares fell more than 8% in US after-hours trading following reports that its board was weighing the future of chief executive Jensen Huang, putting renewed pressure on technology stocks across the region.
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