SoftBank Group’s stock fell sharply on Tuesday, ending a nine-day rally, after the Japanese investment giant revealed a $2 billion stake in Intel. Shares of SoftBank dropped as much as 5.69% in Tokyo trading. Under the deal, the group will acquire Intel’s common stock at $23 per share, compared with Monday’s closing price of $23.66.
The broader Asia-Pacific markets delivered a mixed performance, mirroring overnight weakness on Wall Street as investors await signals from the U.S. Federal Reserve’s upcoming policy meeting. Market sentiment was also influenced by diplomatic talks in Washington between U.S. President Donald Trump, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and European leaders seeking to ease tensions in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 slipped 0.12% in volatile trade after reaching a record high in the prior session, while the Topix index was little changed. South Korea’s Kospi declined 0.31%, and the Kosdaq dropped 0.71%. In contrast, China’s CSI 300 edged higher by 0.13%, extending gains from its highest close since October 2024, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index added 0.19%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lagged behind, falling 0.74%.
U.S. stock futures showed minimal movement during Asian trading hours, with investors bracing for a week dominated by retail earnings and comments from Federal Reserve officials.
On Wall Street overnight, the major indices closed near flat. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 34.30 points, or 0.08%, to finish at 44,911.82. The S&P 500 dipped 0.01% to 6,449.15, while the Nasdaq Composite eked out a 0.03% gain to 21,629.77.
Among heavyweight tech names, Meta Platforms fell 2.3% and Microsoft eased 0.6%, putting pressure on the broader market.
