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StreetAccount Summary - Asian Market Recap: Nikkei +0.60%, Hang Seng +0.77%, Shanghai Composite +0.76% as of 04:10 ET

Apr 20 ,2026

  • Synopsis:

    • Asia equites ended broadly higher Monday in a cautious rally. Tech-heavy benchmarks in South Korea, Taiwan and Japan led with Greater China and India seeing smaller gains. Australia ended near unchanged, Southeast Asia mixed. US futures indicate a lower opening, Europe sharply lower at the open. US dollar inching higher, Asia currencies mixed. US Treasury yields higher across tenors, JGB yields lower. WTI and Brent crude futures around 6% higher each but Brent keeping below $100/bl. Precious metals noticeably lower, base metals under renewed pressure. Cryptocurrencies gaining.

    • Asia equity markets posted a resilient rally Monday as technology stocks again shrugged off a spike in crude oil prices to rally further as the tug-of-war between technology valuations and energy prices for dominance continued. Among developments in the Gulf region, weekend talks between the US and Iran in Pakistan failed to materialize but Tehran said its delegates would arrive in Islamabad Tuesday ahead of negotiations. US media said VP Vance would not attend the talks while President Trump warned the US would resume hostilities if Iran did not agree to a deal. Meanwhile, the US seized an Iran-flagged ship that had attempted to break its embargo while several other internationally-flagged ships said they had been fired upon.

    • Meanwhile, more analyst upgrades over the weekend to the region's big technology stocks post several recent estimate-beating quarterlies and optimistic outlook statements indicated a continuation of the technology supercycle in the medium term. This is outweighing market concerns over energy prices, at least for now. Today, few catalysts to change this narrative; China kept its LPRs on hold at 3.0% for 1Ys and 3.5% for 5Ys as expected. Malaysia's March exports rose 8.3% y/y but were weighed by a contraction in LNG shipments, which contracted 17.5%; New Zealand exports for March hit a record high.

    • Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (7011.JP) signed an agreement with the Australia government to supply three general purpose frigates. Nidec (6594.JP) said a third-party committee investigation had completed its probe into accounting issues and published the impact on past full-year earnings. Hanwha Solutions (009830.KS) has received a Korea exchange designation as unfaithful disclosure company, after it was forced to reduce a rights offering following shareholder backlash. National Australia Bank (NAB.AU) hiked its credit provisioning, citing the Middle East conflict.

  • Digest:

    • US-Iran tensions flare over Strait of Hormuz, heightening uncertainty about talks:

      • Latest Iran headlines have fueled uncertainty surrounding prospects of second of round of talks amid ramp in tensions over Strait of Hormuz. Axios sources said VP Vance expected to lead US delegation for talks in Pakistan this week. CNN sources added Iranian delegation will arrive in Pakistan on Tuesday, led by Foreign Minister Araghchi and parliament speaker Ghalibaf, and if talks go well, President Trump and Iran President Pezeshkian will travel to Islamabad for signing ceremony.

      • Still no public confirmation talks going ahead and Iranian media said earlier Tehran would not participate in negotiations after Trump posted on Truth Social he is sending US delegation. Trump warned US would resume hostilities if Iran doesn't agree to deal, renewing threat to take out power plants and bridges. Iranian hardliners also vowing to broaden conflict if attacked. Iran not sharing Trump's optimism amid still-large gaps between two sides on core issues such as nuclear enrichment and HEU stockpiles (AP).

      • On Friday Trump talked up prosects of agreement and claimed Strait of Hormuz open, which was echoed by Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi. Tensions then escalated after IRGC said Hormuz closed again and decried continued US blockade in violation of ceasefire (Bloomberg), underlining divisions between regime's hardliners and political leaders that are clouding prospects of agreement (link). Shipping has come to another halt after Iran fired on vessels in the Strait (Bloomberg). With US reportedly expanding blockade campaign to seizing Iranian-linked oil tankers (link), Trump said navy took custody of Iranian-flagged cargo ship attempting to escape blockade (Reuters).

    • China LPRs unchanged as expected:

      • China LPRs were steady at 3.00% in 1y and 3.50% in 5y for 11th consecutive month in April, matching expectations, as solid Q1 growth and pick-up in inflation reduce urgency for fresh monetary stimulus to support broader economy (Reuters). Recall Chinese economy rebounded more than expected at 5% y/y in Q1, fastest in three quarters and sitting on top of full-year target range of 4.5% to 5%, showcasing resilience amid initial shocks from Iran war. PBOC reaffirmed monetary policy stance set in March's NPC, as Governor Pan said central bank will implement "moderately loose monetary policy", adhere domestic demand-led strategy and implement policy measures to boost consumption and support services sector at G20 meeting last week. Meanwhile some economists only expect targeted policy help as Beijing will likely hold off on major stimulus until economy faces major speed bump with more seeing policymakers won't cut interest rates this year as oil shock pushed up inflation expectations (Bloomberg)

    • China AI pure plays emerge as new stock market winners:

      • Bloomberg discussed how China's fast-growing and cheap AI models are gaining global users and creating new stock market's winners. China's abundance of low-cost electricity and a host of AI model developers give country advantages as the world sees surge in token consumption in new AI economy. OpenRouter data showed three most-used models by token consumption this month were all Chinese names: Xiaomi's (1810.HK) MiMo, Alibaba's (9988.HK) Qwen and DeepSeek; while MiniMax (100.HK) has two models among top 10. AI pure plays, inlcuidng MiniMax and Zhipu (2513.HK), have quickly won investor favor with their growth potential. Recall Zhipu shares have soared around 750% since IPO in January while MiniMax is up 440%; compared with around 4% loss for Alibaba and 13% drop for Tencent (700.HK) amid big tech's much more exposure to broader economy. Investors bet that China AI progress can be long-term winner, taking cues from DeepSeek impact from last year while Beijing pushes to advance more in its tech industry. Noted analysts also said China is industrializing AI services at low marginal costs and integrating them quickly into real workflows, despite US maintaining a technology advantage. Sentiment also buoyed by reports that DeepSeek is raising at least $300M at valuation of $10B after it turned down multiple funding offers from China's top VC funds and tech giants(Reuters).

    • Japan grapples with disruption to supplies of Middle East aluminum, naphtha:

      • Bloomberg piece discussed impact of aluminum disruptions on Japan. With Japan importing around 30% of aluminum supply from Middle East, S&P assessed country is most vulnerable to shortages. Automakers among sectors most at risk with industry relying on Middle East for about 70% of their imports. Some makers of auto parts warn they will have difficulty making parts due to shortages. Resumption of Strait of Hormuz shipping to pre-war levels expected to months even if waterway is opened, though most Japan companies have about two months' of inventory, risking disruptions by end-April or early May.

      • Separate Nikkei piece highlighted how concerns about naphtha shortages persist, prompting manufacturers to raise prices and curb output. Producers PM Takaichi posted earlier this month Japan had about four months' supply of naphtha and its derivatives and vowed to boost imports outside Middle East, but anxiety about securing enough supply remains. Cost and supply impacts are already reverberating through supply chains with shortages spreading to consumer goods. Japan relies on Middle East imports for around 40% of its naphtha demand and efforts to source alternative supplies hampered by surge in prices, which are likely to remain elevated for months.

    • Notable Gainers:

      • +16.1% 3591.JP (Wacoal Holdings): 3D Investment reportedly asking other holders to sell their shares in Wacoal to 3D Investment

      • +6.2% 6594.JP (Nidec): reports completion of third-party committee investigation, publishes updated investigation report and impact on past FY earnings

      • +4.8% 6479.JP (Minebea Mitsumi): reportedly has zero dependence on Chinese suppliers for cellphone components

      • +4.2% 002415.CH (Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology): reports Q1 results

      • +3.1% 7011.JP (Mitsubishi Heavy Industries): signs agreement with Australia to supply three general purpose frigates

      • +1.2% 6383.JP (Daifuku): to buy EISENMANN, which designs and engineers industrial painting and surface treatment and material handling systems; terms undisclosed

      • +1.2% 005490.KS (POSCO): JSW Steel agrees to form JV with Posco by selling 50% stake in unit Saffron Resources for INR5.09B (KRW80.59B)

    • Notable Decliners:

      • -8.4% 6808.HK (Sun Art Retail Group): guides FY net income attributable (CNY300-350M) vs year-ago CNY405M

      • -2.8% 2039.HK (China International Marine Containers (Group)): CIMC settles down with GOODPACK to resolve litigation and arbitration, signs $60M sales contract

      • -2.4% 009830.KS (HANWHA SOLUTIONS): preliminarily designated as unfaithful disclosure company

      • -0.4% 9147.JP (Nippon Express Holdings): to buy Metro Supply Chain, which operates contract logistics businesses at enterprise value of C$1.80B (¥209.78B)

  • Data:

    • Economic:

      • New Zealand March

        • Trade balance NZ$698M vs revised (NZ$365M) in February

          • Exports +7.3% y/y vs +0.4% in February

          • Imports +9.6% y/y vs +12.0% in February

    • Markets:

      • Nikkei: 348.99 or +0.60% to 58824.89

      • Hang Seng: 200.74 or +0.77% to 26361.07

      • Shanghai Composite: 30.70 or +0.76% to 4082.13

      • Shenzhen Composite: 18.57 or +0.68% to 2762.28

      • ASX200: 6.40 or +0.07% to 8953.30

      • KOSPI: 27.17 or +0.44% to 6219.09

      • SENSEX: 115.63 or +0.15% to 78609.17

    • Currencies:

      • $-¥: +0.33 or +0.21% to 158.9650

      • $-KRW: +6.36 or +0.43% to 1473.4700

      • A$-$: (0.00) or (0.35%) to 0.7146

      • $-INR: +0.55 or +0.60% to 93.1547

      • $-CNY: +0.00 or +0.01% to 6.8183

This information and data is provided for general informational purposes only. The Bank of New York Mellon and our information suppliers do not warrant or guarantee the accuracy, timeliness or completeness of this information or data. We provide no advice nor recommendation or endorsement with respect to any company or securities. We do not undertake any obligation to update or amend this information or data. Nothing herein shall be deemed to constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy securities.
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