Asian shares mixed despite tensions over Taiwan

The Hang Seng was up 0.3% at 25,887.33, the Shanghai Composite index added 0.3% to 3,975.92, Nikkei 225 slipped 0.2% to 50,663.90, the Kospi jumped 1.9% to 4,207.36, while S&P/ASX 200 gave up 0.3% to 8,732.70

Asian shares were mixed on Monday after a lacklustre post-Christmas session on Wall Street, despite a ratcheting up of tensions over Taiwan.

U.S. futures were little changed.

Taiwan’s benchmark gained 0.8%, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong was up 0.3% at 25,887.33. The Shanghai Composite index added 0.3% to 3,975.92.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.2% to 50,663.90.

In South Korea, the Kospi jumped 1.9% to 4,207.36, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gave up 0.3% to 8,732.70.

The price of gold fell 0.4% to $4,535.50 per troy ounce, while silver gained 3% to $79.87. It has jumped to record levels on supply constraints.

Earlier surges in gold prices partly reflected worries during the U.S. government shutdown. Expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will cut interest rates further in the new year, weakening the dollar against other currencies, have also fuelled buying of gold.

Both precious metals have risen this year as investors have looked for safe havens outside of stocks and bonds. Miners posted solid gains Friday. Freeport-McMoRan climbed 2.2%.

Trading is light with institutional investors largely closed out for the year.

Reopening Friday from the Christmas holiday, the S&P 500 index fell less than 0.1% to 6,929.94. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell less than 0.1%, to 48,710.97, while the Nasdaq composite fell 0.1% to 23,593.10.

With three trading days left in 2025, the S&P 500 has climbed nearly 18% this year, helped by the deregulatory policies of the Trump administration and investor optimism about the future of artificial intelligence.