Asian Markets Mixed as Hongโ Kong IPO Market Gainsโ Momentum; New Zealand Cuts Rates
hong Kong โ- Asianโ markets presented a mixed picture โWednesday,with Hong Kong‘s Hang Seng Index boosted by a strong debut from CF PharmTech,while Japan’s Nikkei 225 remained largelyโค unchanged. Theโข Reserve Bank โof Newโ Zealand’s surprise interest rate cut added further complexity to the regional economic landscape.
CF PharmTech shares surged over 224% in their Hong Kong trading debut.โฃ the specialty pharmaceutical company,โค focused onโฃ respiratory diseases, had raisedโฃ around $78 million in its IPO, priced at HKD$14.75 apiece. This listing contributes to aโ resurgence in Hong Kong’s โขIPO market, which has collectively raised approximately $14.1 billion in the first half of 2025.
Japan’s benchmark nikkei 225 was little changed, while theโ Topix added 0.66%. The Japanese yen โweakened 0.38% to 152.48 against the U.S. dollar, continuing a downward โtrend from Monday when it reached the 150-level. Australia’s ASX/S&P 200 fell 0.3%. Mainland โขChina and South Korean markets are currently โclosed for holidays.
In a significant monetary policy โmove, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand trimmed its benchmarkโ interest rate by 50 basis points to 2.5%. The bank cited “weak”โ economic activity through the โขmiddle โof 2025, attributing it to domesticโข supply constraints and global โeconomic policy uncertainty. The โNew โคZealand dollar weakenedโ 0.9% to โ0.5746 per dollar following the โdeclaration. The Bankโค of Thailand is โฃexpected to release its policy decisions later today.
Overnight in the U.S.,the โคS&P 500โฃ fell 0.38% to close at 6,714.59,ending a โขseven-day winning streak,while โthe Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.67% to 22,788.36. โขThe Dow Jones industrial Average declined 91.99 points, or 0.2%,โ to 46,602.98, pressured by a decline in Oracle shares amid โขinvestor concerns about the โprofitability โคof the artificial intelligence sector and ongoing uncertainty surrounding the U.S. government shutdown.
