Asian stocks today: Markets record moderate movement; Nikkei slips 0.2%, Hang Seng up 0.28%

Asian shares held steady on Tuesday after recent strong gains, as optimism over easing global trade tensions kept investor sentiment positive. Tech stocks continued their rally ahead of key earnings from major companies this week.Expectations of potential interest rate cuts in the United States and Canada supported bond markets, while the dollar remained flat as traders awaited signals on how dovish the Federal Reserve’s outlook might be.Japan’s Nikkei (.N225) slipped 0.2 percent on Tuesday, following a 2.5% jump the previous day driven by a strong rally in tech stocks. The index has now climbed nearly 27% since the start of the year.Hang Seng opened with a slight surge of 0.28 percent at 26,508.75, being up from 26,433.70. Meanwhile, gold hovered near $4,000 an ounce, after losing 9 percent over the past five sessions, forcing leveraged investors to unwind positions in what had become an overcrowded trade."What began as a price rise supported by fundamentals now looks driven by retail enthusiasm. And with prices still at record highs in real terms, the next big move in gold is more likely to be down than up," Neil Shearing, group chief economist at Capital Economics, was quoted as saying by Reuters.

"Indeed, our new forecast is that the price will fall to $3,500/oz by the end of 2026," he added. South Korea’s Kospi (.KS11) fell 1.4 percent on Tuesday, giving up part of Monday’s 2.6 percent rise. Data showing stronger-than-expected economic growth in the third quarter, driven by exports and consumer spending, helped support sentiment.MSCI’s Asia-Pacific index outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) slipped 0.1 percent, while China’s blue-chip index (.CSI300) was flat.Futures for the EUROSTOXX 50, DAX, S&P 500, and Nasdaq were steady. On Wall Street, tech stocks extended gains, with Qualcomm (QCOM.O) jumping 11% after launching two new AI chips for data centers.