China slowdown hits Asian equities
Key Points
- China's October industrial production has slowed, acting as a headwind that has pushed Asian equities lower and driven broad declines across Shanghai, Hong Kong and Tokyo.
- ECB vice-chair Frank Elderson has emphasised operational resilience and cross-border supervisory cooperation, which has signalled increased scrutiny for euro-area banks and pressured regional shares.
- The Fed H.15 release has shown Treasury yields edging higher, with a firmer 10-year that has weighed on rate-sensitive assets and contributed to sector divergence.
- An AI-led sell-off in large-cap technology has driven intraday U.S. volatility, while late-session chip strength highlighted by Nvidia (NVDA) has helped pare losses and left indexes mixed.
Global Market Summary
Asian markets closed broadly lower after China's October industrial production softened, with the Shanghai Composite (000001.SS) down 0.97%, the Hang Seng (HSI) down 1.85% and the Nikkei (NKY) down 1.77%. European benchmarks retreated amid ECB supervisory messaging, the CAC 40 (FRA40) fell 0.76%, the FTSE 100 (UKX) declined 1.11% and the DAX (DAX) lost 0.69%. U.S. indexes were mixed as late‑session tech buying limited declines: the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) rose 0.13% while the S&P 500 (SPX) slipped 0.05% and the Dow (DJIA) fell 0.65%.
Top Movers
Energy led sector gains with XLE (+1.70%), while technology (VGT +0.52%) and real estate (VNQ +0.21%) finished higher. Financials and materials lagged, with XLF (-1.00%) and XLB (-0.91%), and communication services XLC was down (-0.54%). Notable stock movers included CDTX (+105.41%), SRRK (+24.41%) and CSIQ (+17.33%) among gainers, and DGNX (-22.00%), STUB (-20.99%) and CLSK (-8.51%) among decliners.
Macro highlights
China's October industrial production slowed to 4.9% year‑on‑year versus 6.5% previously and below consensus, a headwind for Asian equities. ECB vice‑chair Frank Elderson emphasised operational resilience and cross‑border supervisory cooperation, signalling increased scrutiny for euro‑area banks. The Federal Reserve's H.15 rates release showed Treasury yields edging higher, with the 10‑year (US10Y) firming slightly and weighing on rate‑sensitive assets.
News that moved markets
An AI‑led sell‑off in large‑cap technology drove intraday volatility in U.S. stocks, with late‑session strength in chip names—highlighted by Nvidia (NVDA)—helping pare losses. Stora Enso said it will separate its Swedish forest assets into a new listed company and launched a strategic review of Central European sawmills, a move described as aimed at sharpening strategic focus and unlocking shareholder value. Company updates and earnings roundups including Walt Disney (DIS) and Canadian Solar (CSIQ) were also featured in market coverage and contributed to sector‑specific moves. Completed transactions reported on the day included MetroCity Bankshares' expected closing with First IC, the closing of NB Bancorp's merger with Provident Bancorp, Epsilon's closing of the Peak Companies acquisitions and Biogen's completion of its acquisition of Alcyone Therapeutics. Announced deals included Springshare's acquisition of Pathrise, Clover Capital Partners' purchase of The Woodlands of Plano and Pye‑Barker Fire & Safety's acquisition of Red E Fire Protection.
Key Takeaways
- Asian equities closed broadly lower after China's October industrial production softened, with the Shanghai Composite, Hang Seng and Nikkei all finishing lower.
- European benchmarks retreated after ECB supervisory messaging, with the CAC 40 (FRA40), FTSE 100 (UKX) and DAX all finishing lower as bank scrutiny rose.
- U.S. indexes finished mixed as an AI-led large-cap tech sell-off drove intraday volatility, while late-session chip strength helped pare losses and left major averages uneven.
- Sector performance diverged: energy led gains while financials and materials lagged; notable stock movers included outsized advances in CDTX and big declines in DGNX and STUB.
References
- 1. https://news.cision.com/stora-enso-oyj/r/stora-enso-completes-strategic-review-and-intends-to-create-the-largest-listed-pure-play-forest-comp%2Cc4267130
- 2. https://apnews.com/article/wall-street-stocks-dow-nasdaq-8a8c36ff8bb88dec51da8483833c2914
- 3. https://nasdaq.com/articles/company-news-nov-14-2025
- 4. https://www.bankingsupervision.europa.eu/press/speeches/date/2025/html/ssm.sp251114~10eb9568fe.en.html
- 5. https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/tvservices/podcast/html/ecb.pod251114_episode116.ga.html
- 6. https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h15/
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