On Monday morning (20 October, 9:28 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), major indices in Asia Pacific surged, with investors digesting a series of key economic releases from China.
China announced a 4.8% economic expansion in the third quarter of 2025, in line with a Reuters poll amid slower growth due to geopolitical uncertainties.
This marks a deceleration from the 5.2% recorded in the second quarter, and would be the weakest growth since Q3 of 2024. The poll suggests that the growth rate could lose further momentum in the coming months, moderating to 4.3% in the fourth quarter.
Additionally, the world’s second-largest economy maintained its benchmark lending rates for the fifth straight month in October, aligning with market expectations. The one-year loan prime rate remained at 3.0%, while the five-year loan prime rate was also held steady at 3.5%.
Japan’s NIKKEI jumped by 2.87% to 48,945.50. Australia’s ASX 200 climbed by 0.02% to 8,997.50, and South Korea’s KOSPI increased by 0.99% to 3,785.94.
As for stocks in China, Shanghai’s SSEC added 0.60% to 3,862.77. Hong Kong’s HSI soared by 2.29% to 25,825.50, and Shenzhen’s SZI expanded by 1.82% to 12,919.94.
The U.S. stock markets edged up on Friday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) gained 0.52% to 46,190.61. NASDAQ escalated by 0.52% to 22,679.97, and S&P 500 rose by 0.53% to 6,664.01. VIX dropped by 17.9% to 20.78.
As for commodities, oil prices settled slightly higher on Friday after the International Energy Agency projected a rising supply surplus. Moreover, the announcement that U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin would hold further talks on Ukraine added to market uncertainty. Brent crude futures closed at $61.29 per barrel, gaining 23 cents, or 0.38%, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures ended the session at $57.54 per barrel, up 8 cents, or 0.14%.
This morning, Brent futures fell 18 cents, or 0.29%, to $61.11 a barrel, and the WTI dipped 19 cents, or 0.33%, to $57.35 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures grew by 1.4% to $4,272.2 per Troy ounce.
