Artur Ślesik

Taiwan’s stock market reopens Monday after the Lunar New Year break, with a new 15% U.S. global import tariff set to take effect Tuesday. TAIEX last closed at 33,605.71 on Feb. 11; TSMC ended at T$1,915. The trading week is shortened by a Feb. 27 holiday. Taiwan’s cabinet said the initial tariff impact appears limited but will monitor developments.

Brazil’s Ibovespa closed Friday at a record 190,534.42, up 1.06%, led by Vale and major banks. The real ended at 5.1766 per dollar, its strongest since May 2024, as U.S. tariff policy shifted. Vale rose 3.23%, Itaú Unibanco gained 1.40%, and Bradesco’s preferred shares added 2.02%. The Ibovespa saw intraday swings from 186,700.34 to 190,726.78.

South Korea’s KOSPI closed at a record 5,808.53 on Friday, up 2.31%, while the KOSDAQ slipped 0.58%. BlackRock Fund Advisors disclosed a stake above 5% in SK hynix, valued at $23.9 billion. The VKOSPI volatility index hit 43.87 as investors shifted to dividend-linked trades. The Bank of Korea is expected to hold rates at 2.5% on Thursday.

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing shares closed at HK$407.80 on Friday, down 0.25%, ahead of annual results due Thursday. Officials highlighted 24 new listings raising over HK$87 billion so far this year, with 488 companies in the IPO queue. The Hang Seng Index fell 1.1% in the first session of the Year of the Horse. The London Metal Exchange confirmed new permanent restrictions on large long positions.

AREIT shares closed down 0.46% at 43.50 pesos Friday, trading nearly 900,000 shares. The company reported 2025 revenues up 26% to P13.0 billion and net income up 28% to P9.4 billion, citing acquisitions and 99% occupancy. AREIT declared a 0.62 peso-per-share dividend, ex-date March 4. The PSEi rose 0.9% to 6,465.12.