Asian Markets End Mixed as South Korea Rebounds and Japan Slips
Asian markets did not move together on Monday, November 2, 2026. South Korea rose sharply after a weak start, Japan and Taiwan fell, and Hong Kong and mainland China rose modestly. The mixed result followed a sharp sell-off in US technology shares on Friday.
What happened in South Korea
South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI rose 128.34 points, or 2.24 percent, to close at 5,859.08, according to Aju Press. The index opened lower and fell as much as 1.99 percent to 5,616.50 early in the session before recovering.
Institutional investors bought a net 1.23 trillion won of KOSPI shares, while retail investors sold a net 1.35 trillion won and foreign investors sold a net 373.1 billion won, Aju Press reported.
Samsung Electronics gained 1.78 percent to 229,000 won, and SK hynix advanced 3.81 percent to 1,472,000 won after both chipmakers recovered from early losses. The tech-heavy KOSDAQ rose 9.98 points, or 1.38 percent, to 734.36. The South Korean won closed down 9.5 won at 1,343.8 per dollar.
What happened in Japan and Taiwan
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 fell 208.25 points, or 0.33 percent, to 63,081.86. Losses in Kioxia Holdings and other selected technology stocks outweighed gains in semiconductor equipment makers.
Kioxia plunged 15.78 percent to 11,345 yen after its profit outlook for the fourth quarter fell short of market expectations, a result already covered in a separate Finance News post here: https://investclaritypath.com/kioxia-shares-fall-record-quarter-outlook-disappoints/
Tokyo Electron, by contrast, climbed 5.16 percent to 10,005 yen after forecasting a 50.6 percent increase in full-year net profit and announcing a share buyback of up to 150 billion yen. SoftBank Group fell 1.58 percent, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group lost 1.86 percent, and Toyota Motor slipped 0.62 percent.
Taiwan’s TAIEX fell 291.69 points, or 0.65 percent, to 44,920.14 after recovering from a much steeper drop earlier in the session. TSMC declined 1.69 percent to NT$2,330, while Hon Hai Precision Industry, better known as Foxconn, rose 2.24 percent and MediaTek gained 1.40 percent.
China, Hong Kong and Australia
A second check, from Seeking Alpha via TradingView, put Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index up 0.50 percent to around 23,412 and mainland China’s Shanghai Composite up 0.91 percent to 3,631.37, with the Shenzhen Component up 1.75 percent to 11,023.57. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.58 percent to 8,856.50.
China’s private factory activity stayed in growth in October, with the RatingDog China Manufacturing PMI at 52.0, down slightly from 52.1 in September, as covered here: https://investclaritypath.com/china-private-pmi-stays-growth-october-2026/
Aju Press noted that Monday’s mixed results followed Friday’s US sell-off, when the Nasdaq Composite fell 2.86 percent and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index dropped 7.20 percent as disappointing corporate earnings revived concerns over heavy spending on artificial intelligence.
External source credit: Aju Press, November 2, 2026: https://www.ajupress.com/view/20261102164546165 and Seeking Alpha via TradingView, November 2, 2026: https://www.tradingview.com/news/seekingalpha:c7fa8d077094b:0-asian-stocks-diverge-following-wall-street-tech-sell-off-pboc-shifts-policy-anchor-to-overnight-rate/
Why it matters for beginners
A mixed day is a useful reminder that a region is not one market. Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, China and Australia have different companies, different investors and different drivers on the same day.
It also shows why a single company result can move one market more than others. In Japan, a weak outlook from Kioxia weighed on the Nikkei even as other semiconductor equipment shares rose. In South Korea, buying by institutions helped the market recover from an early fall.
For a beginner, the lesson is simple: look at what moved, and why, rather than assuming every market in Asia moved the same way.
What to watch next
Later on Monday, US ISM manufacturing data for October is due, and Apple reports earnings after the US market closes. On Tuesday, the United States holds midterm elections and Australia’s central bank announces its rate decision. On Thursday, the Bank of England announces its rate decision. Each of those events can change how investors view growth, inflation and interest rates.
FAQ
Did all Asian markets fall after the US tech sell-off?
No. Japan and Taiwan fell, but South Korea, Hong Kong and mainland China rose on November 2, so the session ended mixed rather than uniformly lower.
Why did South Korea rise if it opened lower?
Aju Press reported that the KOSPI fell as much as 1.99 percent early in the session, then recovered as institutional buying helped offset selling by retail and foreign investors, with Samsung and SK hynix recovering from early losses.
Does a mixed day tell beginners what will happen next?
No. One day shows how investors reacted to recent earnings and to the US sell-off. It does not predict the next session, which will also reflect US data, earnings and central bank decisions due later in the week.
