Asian markets mixed - Technology stocks weigh on Wall Street

In Asia, stock markets showed mixed results on Thursday. While Japan's Nikkei 225 rose by 0.7% to 38,400.00 points, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 also impressed with an increase of 0.8% to 8,473.30 points. In South Korea, the Kospi remained stable at 2,503.01 points after the central bank cut its key interest rate to provide economic relief. The Bank of Korea reduced its key interest rate by a quarter percentage point to 3% and lowered its economic growth forecast for this year from 2.4% to 2.2% and for 2025 from 2.1% to 1.9%. In China, investors took the opportunity to take profits, leading to price losses. The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong fell by 1.3% to 19,344.07 points and the Shanghai Composite by 0.3% to 3,299.87 points. U.S. markets remain closed on Thursday for the Thanksgiving holiday but will open for a half session on Friday. On Wednesday, the S&P 500 fell by 0.4% to 5,998.74 points, ending a series of seven winning sessions. The Dow Jones dropped by 0.3% to 44,722.06 points, also ending a similar winning streak. The losses in the U.S. focused on major technology stocks. Nvidia, Microsoft, and Broadcom fell dramatically. Nvidia lost 1.2%, Microsoft also 1.2%, and Broadcom as much as 3.1%. PC manufacturers such as HP, which dropped by 11.4%, and Dell, which declined by 12.2% after disappointing quarterly results, also dragged markets down. However, financial and healthcare companies were perceived positively and proved to be a support for the market. Berkshire Hathaway gained 0.9%, while Merck & Co. increased by 1.5%. The U.S. Department of Commerce confirmed stable economic growth of 2.8% in the third quarter, driven by robust consumer spending and an increase in exports. While consumption contributes to economic performance, recent quarterly results from retailers paint a mixed picture. Nordstrom lost 8.1% due to a sales warning, while Urban Outfitters soared by 18.3% after exceeding analysts' expectations for the third quarter.