On Monday morning (6 October, 9:20 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), indices in Asia Pacific showed mixed performance as investors digested the latest political developments in Japan. The ruling Liberal Democratic Party selected Sanae Takaichi as its new leader, setting the stage for her to become Japan’s first female prime minister.
Analysts expect Takaichi to uphold the government’s strategy of pursuing a “high-pressure economy,” potentially encouraging the Bank of Japan to maintain its current supportive monetary stance, while remaining open to a potential 25 basis-point rate increase by January 2026.
Meanwhile, markets in China and South Korea were closed for holidays.
Japan’s NIKKEI soared by 4.44% to 47,802.89. Australia’s ASX 200 slid by 0.11% to 8,977.1, and Hong Kong’s HSI fell by 0.42% to 27,027.2.
The U.S. stock markets were mixed on Friday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) rose by 0.51% to 46,758.28. S&P 500 climbed by 0.01% to 6,715.79, while NASDAQ dropped by 0.28% to 22,780.50. VIX increased by 0.12% to 16.65.
As for commodities, oil prices climbed by roughly 1% in early Monday trading, following OPEC+’s decision to implement only a moderate production increase, which helped to ease concerns about rapid supply growth. Brent crude advanced $0.63 or 1% to reach $65.16 per barrel. Meanwhile, U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate rose $0.58, also up 1%, trading at $61.46 a barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures surged by 0.98% to $3,947.2 per Troy ounce.
