Asian Shares Mostly Lower Amid Trade Tensions

Market Overview - Asian stocks ended mostly lower due to ongoing Sino-U.S. trade tensions and a prolonged U.S. government shutdown, with predictions that it may become the longest in history [1] - Chinese and Hong Kong markets fell as the U.S. and China imposed mutual port fees on each other's shipping firms, escalating the trade war and impacting the global maritime industry [2] - Japan's markets experienced significant losses following the collapse of the coalition government, complicating the fiscal policy outlook [3] Company Performance - In Japan, SoftBank Group, Chugai Pharma, and Furukawa Electric saw declines of 6-7 percent [4] - Samsung Electronics' shares fell 1.8 percent despite reporting stronger-than-expected third-quarter profits driven by robust chip demand [4] - Hanwha Ocean shares plummeted 5.8 percent after sanctions were announced against its U.S.-based subsidiaries by Beijing [5] Sector Movements - Australian markets ended slightly higher, with rare earth stocks gaining due to renewed U.S.-China tensions, while gold prices surged, benefiting gold miners [6] - The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 2.2 percent as Broadcom Inc. secured a significant data center deal with OpenAI [8] - The S&P 500 and Dow Jones also rallied, with increases of 1.6 percent and 1.3 percent respectively, following a more conciliatory tone from President Trump regarding U.S.-China relations [9]