Asian markets mostly advanced on Friday, following gains in US equities as investors assessed Big Tech earnings.

A gauge of Asian shares snapped a two-day gain, with Korean chipmakers SK Hynix Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. weighing as the nation’s markets reopened after the Lunar New Year holidays.

Asian equities fell Friday (Jan 31), as concerns over the impact DeepSeek will have on the artificial intelligence market pressured South Korean chipmakers. US futures climbed after robust results from Apple Inc.

Fujifilm Holdings has announced an ambitious plan to invest approximately ¥100 billion ($640.5 million US) by March 2027 to increase its global semiconductor materials production capacity.

SK Hynix's shares slumped, hit by the shock from Chinese artificial-intelligence startup DeepSeek as stock trading resumed in South Korea after a four-day holiday.

Fujifilm, one of a few makers of EUV photoresists, will expand capacities in the U.S., Japan, and South Korea as Intel, TSMC, Samsung, and SK hynix ramp up production.

Chipmaker SK Hynix overtook its larger rival Samsung on quarterly profit for the first time, with its lead in advanced memory chips producing robust sales that it expects to double this year as a boom in artificial intelligence data centres continues.

TL;DR: SK hynix reported record profits in 2024, driven by high demand for its HBM memory used in AI chips, achieving sales of 66.1 trillion won and operating profits of 23.4 trillion won.

Asian equities fell Friday, pressured by technology companies. US futures climbed after robust results from Apple Inc.

Driving the aforementioned anxieties is Trump and team members such as Energy Secretary nominee Chris Wright’s dislike of EVs and subsidies, economic nationalism, fondness for fossil fuels, nuclear energy, and gas-powered vehicles, and love of tariffs as an FDI “incentive.”

The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a higher open on Friday, with stocks likely to add to the gains posted during

Wall Street pointed higher early Friday as more strong earnings results trickled in along with a closely-watched report from the U.S. government showing that inflation ticked higher. Futures for the