World shares are mixed after Intel helped drive Wall Street to more
records
[September 19, 2025] By
TERESA CEROJANO
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — World shares were mixed on Friday, with most
Asian stocks down and European indexes higher after Wall Street rose to
more records.
In early European trading, Germany's DAX rose 0.3% to 23,736.30. The CAC
40 in Paris added nearly 0.9% to 7,922.50 while Britain's FTSE 100 edged
up 0.1% to 9,238.90 as investors assessed a slew of recent monetary
policy decisions, including by the Bank of Japan, the Federal Reserve
and the Bank of England.
Futures for the S&P 500 slipped less than 0.1% while that for the Dow
Jones Industrial Average was up less than 0.1%.
Japan's Nikkei 225 switched from gains to losses, closing nearly 0.6%
lower to 45,045.81, after the BOJ decided to keep its benchmark
short-term interest rate unchanged at 0.5% and announced plans to start
selling its exchange-traded fund holdings and real-estate investment
trusts. Data released Friday also showed the country's annual inflation
in August slowed to a 10-month low at 2.7%, from 3.1% the previous
month.
In Chinese markets, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index shed less than 0.1% to
26,537.97 while the Shanghai Composite index edged down less than 0.1%
to 3,829.34. Investors are awaiting a phone call later Friday between
U.S. President Donald Trump and China's President Xi Jinping on tariffs
and finalizing a deal to allow TikTok to keep operating in the United
States.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.3% to 8,773.50 after losses a day
earlier, when data indicated the jobs market was showing signs of
softness.
South Korea' Kospi fell nearly 0.5% to 3,445.24. India's BSE Sensex
edged down 0.4%, trimming earlier gains. Taiwan's Taiex dipped 0.7%.
Wall Street rolled to more records Thursday as Nvidia and Intel led a
rally for technology stocks on the announcement of their deal that
includes a $5 billion investment.
The S&P 500 rose 0.5% and is on track for a third straight winning week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 124 points, or 0.3%, and the
Nasdaq composite climbed 0.9%. All three set all-time highs.
Intel soared 22.8% for its best day since 1987 after Nvidia said it
would buy $5 billion of the chipmaker’s stock. It’s part of a
collaboration where the pair will develop products for data centers and
personal computers. Nvidia climbed 3.5% and was by far the strongest
force lifting the S&P 500 because it’s Wall Street’s most valuable
company.
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A dealer walks near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock
Price Index (KOSPI), left, and the foreign exchange rate between
U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in
Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Sept. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
 Encouraging reports on the economy
sent Treasury yields climbing in the bond market, meanwhile,
including one that said fewer U.S. workers applied for unemployment
benefits last week than expected.
That could indicate the pace of layoffs is slowing, and it was a
relief after the prior week’s data showed a disconcerting leap to a
four-year high. The job market has slowed so much that the Federal
Reserve on Wednesday cut its main interest rate for the first time
this year in order to give it some help.
The Fed also indicated more cuts may be on the way, though Chair
Jerome Powell warned that the Fed is in a precarious position and
may have to change course quickly. That’s because the economy is in
an unusual situation where the job market is slowing while inflation
is remaining stubbornly high at the same time.
The Fed is in charge of fixing both, but it has only one tool to do
so. And helping one by moving interest rates often hurts the other
in the short term.
Expectations are high on Wall Street that the Fed will keep cutting
interest rates, and an unexpected halt could send stocks tumbling.
Critics say stock prices have already shot too high and become too
expensive, in part because of heavy bets on continued cuts in rates.
On Wall Street, smaller stocks led the way. They can be some of the
biggest beneficiaries of easier interest rates, and the Russell 2000
index of small stocks rallied 2.5% to join its bigger rivals in
setting all-time highs. It topped its prior record, which was set in
2021.
In other dealings on Friday, benchmark U.S. crude lost 51 cents to
$62.75 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, shed 43
cents to $66.49 per barrel.
The U.S. dollar rose to 147.96 yen from 147.92 yen. The euro slipped
to $1.1758 from $1.790.
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