Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index experienced an increase of 1.27%, concluding at 48,277.74, whereas the Topix index saw a rise of 0.62%, finishing at 3,203.42. South Korea’s Kospi index reached a record high on Thursday, following the International Monetary Fund’s adjustment of the country’s 2025 growth forecast to 0.9% from 0.8%. The IMF has revised its growth forecast for the global economy, indicating that the effects of U.S. tariffs were “at the modest end of the range.” The forecast upgrade was attributed to multiple factors, notably the responsiveness of the private sector, which accelerated imports in the initial half of the year and swiftly adjusted supply chains to alter trade routes; trade agreements between the U.S. and various nations; and the general moderation exhibited by much of the global community, which predominantly maintained the openness of the international trading system.

South Korean stocks experienced an uptick following U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s interview on Wednesday, during which he indicated that Washington was “about to finish up” trade negotiations with the Asian nation. “The devil’s in the details, but we are ironing out the details,” he stated. The automotive, electronics, and industrial equipment sectors drove the advances on the Kospi index. Samsung Electronics experienced a 2.84% increase, reaching an unprecedented peak, whereas Hyundai Motor saw a gain exceeding 8%. Kia experienced an increase of 7.23%. South Korea’s Kospi experienced a notable increase of 2.49%, concluding the session at 3,748.37, while the small-cap Kosdaq remained unchanged, finishing at 865.41. Shares of SK Inc. declined by more than 5% following the Supreme Court’s partial overturning of a prior ruling regarding Chairman Chey Tae-won’s divorce settlement, according to sources. In the previous year, a lower court mandated Chey to disburse approximately $1 billion to his estranged spouse in a prominent divorce litigation.

Meanwhile, shares of chipmaker SK Hynix concluded the trading session with a 7.1% increase. Australia’s ASX/S&P 200 reached a new peak following a significant increase in the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate, which surged to a near four-year high of 4.5% in September. This stands in contrast to the 4.3% projected by economists and the 4.2% rate recorded in August. The index experienced an increase of 0.86%, concluding at 9,068.4. In September, employment increased by 14,900, falling short of the anticipated 20,000 rise. The disappointing jobs report sets the stage for additional reductions in interest rates. The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong concluded the trading session unchanged at 25,888.51, whereas the Hang Seng Tech Index experienced a decline of 1.18%, finishing at 6,003.56. Mainland’s CSI 300 experienced an increase of 0.26%, concluding the session at 4,618.42. Shares of Nio listed in Hong Kong experienced a decline of 9% following a lawsuit from Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, which accuses the Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer of violating securities laws through the inflation of its revenues.

A court document filed in August in the Southern District of New York identifies Nio’s CEO Li Bin and former Financial Officer Feng Wei as defendants in the lawsuit. India’s benchmark Nifty 50 and the BSE Sensex experienced an increase of 0.85% each as of 2 pm. U.S. equity futures exhibited a modest increase following the earnings reports from major banks that surpassed expectations, amidst the ongoing third week of the government shutdown in Washington and the continuation of rising trade tensions with China. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average concluded the session with minimal variation, declining by a mere 17.15 points, equivalent to 0.04%, settling at 46,253.31. At one point during the trading session, the 30-stock index experienced an increase of 422.88 points. The S&P 500 concluded the trading session with a 0.4% increase, reaching 6,671.06, following an intraday peak of 1.2% gain. The Nasdaq Composite concluded the session with a gain of 0.7%, reaching a level of 22,670.08. It experienced a brief rally of up to 1.4%.