Asian equities traded mixed on Wednesday as losses in US technology stocks continued to weigh down sentiment, while precious metals inched higher as investors flocked to safe-haven assets.Hong Kongs HSI was down 26 points to 26,807 at 10:55 am IST. In Japan, Nikkei fell over 539 points or 0.99% to 54,180. Shanghai and Shenzhen were down 0.02% and 1.06%, respectively.Meanwhile, in South Korea, Kospi jumped over 1% to reach 5,349. Technology-linked stocks dragged on the index, with chipmaker Tokyo Electron sliding 2% and testing equipment firm Advantest down 1.6%. SoftBank Group moved against the broader trend, edging up 0.2%. Nintendo shares slumped more than 10% despite the company reporting strong profits a day earlier. The sharp fall reflected concerns among investors and analysts about whether the sales momentum of the Switch 2 gaming console, introduced last year, can be sustained. Gold and silver prices extended their rebound on Wednesday, supported by demand for safe-haven assets amid heightened geopolitical tensions, a weaker U.S. dollar and ongoing tariff-related uncertainty. Gold jumped 2.8% to $5,070.30 per ounce, while silver surged 4.8% to $87.29 an ounce. The gains follow steep losses earlier in the week. Gold had dropped below $4,500 on Monday from nearly $5,600 last week, while silver plunged more than 31% on Friday. Overnight in the US, Wall Street closed sharply lower as technology stocks came under pressure. The S&P 500 fell 0.8%, or 58.63 points, to 6,917.81. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.3%, or 166.67 points, to 49,240.99, while the Nasdaq Composite slid 1.4%, or 336.92 points, to 23,255.19. Nvidia dropped 2.8%, and Microsoft lost 2.9%, partly reflecting investor concerns over stretched valuations and whether heavy investment in artificial intelligence will generate sufficient returns. PayPal plunged 20.3% after reporting weaker-than-expected quarterly results, while Pfizer slipped 3.3% despite posting stronger-than-expected profits. In the bond market, the yield on the US 10-year Treasury eased to 4.27% on Wednesday from 4.29% late Monday, as rising bond prices signalled stronger investor demand. Oil prices traded firmer in early Asian hours. US benchmark crude rose 0.6% to $63.60 per barrel, while Brent crude gained 0.5% to $67.66 per barrel. Prices were supported in part by renewed tensions between the U.S. and Iran, after a U.S. Navy fighter jet shot down an Iranian drone flying close to a U.S. aircraft carrier, according to ING Bank analysts. In currency markets, the US dollar strengthened to 156.25 yen from 155.72 yen, while the euro edged up to $1.1824 from $1.1819.
