On Tuesday, October 6, 2026, most Asian markets rose after a technology-led rally took the Nasdaq to a record close in the preceding U.S. session. The gains were uneven: Japan and Hong Kong advanced, while South Korea fell. This is a dated account of that session, not a description of the next day’s trading.
What happened in Asian markets on October 6?
The Associated Press reported that Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.1% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1%, while South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.9%. Reuters also described a mostly positive session, reporting a 1.1% rise in the Nikkei and a 0.7% gain in the Hang Seng; it said South Korean shares fell nearly 1% after reopening from a holiday. The outlets reported different Hang Seng figures, so they should be read as separate market snapshots rather than combined into a single estimate. Mainland China’s markets were closed for a national holiday, according to AP.
The broad pattern was positive but not universal. Japan and Hong Kong rose, while South Korea declined; China had no open session to compare.
What was the Wall Street backdrop?
In the preceding U.S. session, the S&P 500 rose 0.6% to 7,818.93, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.5% to 51,521.28, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.4% to 27,599.79, according to the Associated Press. The S&P 500 set a record, and the Nasdaq extended the all-time closing high it had reached the day before. These are U.S. closing figures for that session, not Asian market moves.
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Technology strength helped set the tone. Reuters described the Asian market mood as following the prior Nasdaq record, alongside lower oil prices and less immediate pressure from longer-dated government bonds. AP also pointed to investor expectations for strong quarterly corporate earnings as support for U.S. record prices.
Why were investors optimistic—and what risks remained?
FactSet analysts expected S&P 500 earnings per share to grow nearly 30% year over year for the July–September 2026 quarter, AP reported on October 6. That was an estimate, not a reported result; if achieved, it would mark a third consecutive quarter of growth above 25%.
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Ng Jing Wen of Mizuho Bank said in commentary: “The rally reflected confidence that corporate earnings, particularly across technology and AI-related sectors, can withstand elevated energy costs and restrictive interest rates,” AP reported.
The optimism did not remove broader market risks. Reuters said oil prices had retreated and immediate pressure in longer-dated government bonds had eased, but sovereign yields remained near multi-year highs amid inflation and public-debt concerns. AP also noted elevated oil costs, inflation, bond yields and the possibility that AI-linked shares were overvalued. A favorable earnings outlook and a technology-led rally therefore did not mean those pressures had gone away.
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What changed in the following session?
The October 6 headline should not be read as a continuing market trend. In its October 7 follow-up, AP reported that Asian shares mostly retreated in the subsequent session even as U.S. shares reached new highs. That next-day reversal shows how quickly a daily market snapshot can change; it does not alter the closing figures reported for October 6.
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