Asian shares and US futures advance and oil prices fall back
Jan 5, 2026, 9:11 PM | Updated: Jan 6, 2026, 2:40 pm
BANGKOK (AP) — Asian shares and U.S. futures advanced Tuesday after stocks closed higher on Wall Street.
Oil prices fell back after gaining Monday following the capture by U.S. forces of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in a weekend raid.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 gained 1.1% to 52,389.63 on strong buying of tech related shares like precision tools maker Disco Corp., which jumped 5.3%.
South Korea’s Kospi pushed further into record territory, gaining 0.8% to 4,495.49, buoyed by gains for automakers and some electronics manufacturers.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng surged 1.8% to 26,815.75 and the Shanghai Composite index was up 1.1% at 4,069.38.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.4% to 8,697.10.
Taiwan’s Taiex climbed 1.2%, while in India, the Sensex edged 0.1% lower.
Monday’s gains on Wall Street were broad, with particularly big jumps for energy companies and banks. Elsewhere, industrial companies and retailers joined in to help boost major indexes.
The S&P 500 rose 0.6% to 6,902.05 and is just below its record set in late December. The Dow Jones Industrial Average set a record, adding 1.2% to 48,977.18.
The Nasdaq composite rose 0.7% to 23,395.82.
Smaller company stocks had a particularly strong day, outpacing other indexes, in a sign of broader investor confidence. The Russell 2000 rose 1.6%.
Energy companies and the oil market were a key focus after the capture of Maduro by U.S. forces. The price of U.S. crude jumped 1.7% to $58.32 per barrel. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, rose 1.7% to $61.76 per barrel.
However, oil fell back early Tuesday. U.S. crude shed 18 cents to $58.14 per barrel, while Brent crude lost 14 cents to $61.62 per barrel.
Chevron jumped 5.1%, Exxon Mobil rose 2.2% and Halliburton surged 7.8% for some of the strongest gains in the market after President Donald Trump floated a plan for U.S. oil companies to help rebuild Venezuela’s oil industry.
Venezuela’s oil industry has been decimated by neglect and international sanctions and may require years of substantial investments to restore past production levels.
Investors will get several updates on the U.S. economy this week.
On Monday, the Institute for Supply Management released its manufacturing index for December showing the sector continued shrinking. More importantly, the business group will release its December report on the services sector on Wednesday. The services sector makes up the bulk of the U.S. economy and it grew, even if only slightly, throughout most of 2025.
Reports on the job market later this week, which include updates for job openings and overall employment, will be a bigger focus for the Federal Reserve. The U.S. central bank has been weighing a slowing job market against risks for rising inflation as it decides whether to cut interest rates. It cut its benchmark rate three times late in 2025, but inflation has remained above its 2% target and that has made the Fed more cautious.
Wall Street still expects the Fed to hold rates steady at its upcoming meeting later in January.
Technology companies, especially artificial intelligence, were in the spotlight Monday as the industry kicked off the annual CES trade show in Las Vegas. Nvidia fell 0.4% and Applied Materials jumped 5.7%.
AI advances helped propel the broader market to a series of records in 2025. Updates from influential technology companies could help shed more light on whether the big investments in AI are worth the potential financial risks.
In other trading early Tuesday, the U.S. dollar slipped to 156.36 Japanese yen from 156.40 yen. The euro rose to $1.1735 from $1.1724.
Gold gained 0.6% after a 2.8% jump on Monday. The price of silver added another 2.7% after soaring 7.9% on Monday. Such assets are often considered safe havens in times of geopolitical turmoil. The metals have notched record prices over the last year amid lingering economic concerns brought on by conflicts and trade wars.
Bitcoin fell back 1.5% after rising to its highest level since mid-November, falling to $93,700.
