Europe Asia News

According to data released by Japan’s Ministry of Finance on Wednesday, Japan’s exports rose 6.1% year-on-year in November. This growth significantly exceeded economists’ average forecast of a 4.8% increase and came in above the previous month’s 3.6% rise.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index traded flat, while the Topix fell 0.25%. South Korea’s Kospi Index rose 0.72% and the small-cap Kosdaq Index gained 0.19%.

Shares of Japanese financial institution SBI Shinsei Bank jumped more than 12% following an initial public offering worth 322 billion yen ($2.1 billion), with the share price set at 1,450 yen. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index declined 0.25%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index edged higher, while mainland China’s CSI 300 Index edged lower.

Shares of Chinese chipmaker MetaX Integrated Circuits surged more than 700% on Wednesday upon their market debut in Shanghai after the company raised about $600 million in its IPO. Similar to Moore Threads, which made a strong start earlier this month, MetaX develops graphics processing units for artificial intelligence applications and is entering a rapidly growing sector as AI services become more widespread.

Shares of crypto exchange HashKey began trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange after raising about $207 million in its IPO and opened up around 3%.

In the U.S., the S&P 500 fell for a third session as investors digested the delayed release of the November jobs report. The broad market index closed down 0.24% at 6,800.26, while the Nasdaq Composite closed up 0.23% at 23,111.46. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 302.30 points, or 0.62%, to close at 48,114.26.