Japanese election shakes up yen, stock markets
This is a podcast from the Business Times. Good evening. It’s Monday, July 21st, 2025. Here’s your Market Focus daily closing bell update. For the Business Times, I’m Emily Leu. Japan’s ruling coalition led by Prime Minister Shagiru Ishiba lost its majority in the upper house elections yesterday. It’s a pretty big setback for Mr. Ishiba and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, but the prime minister says he will be staying on as the leader. This is the first time since 1955 that the LDP does not have a legislative majority. Mr. Ishiba is now under pressure to cut or abolish the consumption tax, a move that will add on to Japan’s high government deficit, which is already at more than 200% of GDP. The Japanese yen gained as much as 0.7% to 147.79 per dollar overnight, while Japanese stocks fell 0.2% today. Analysts expect that volatility will probably rise in the short term and the yen could weaken further amidst the political uncertainty. Hong Kong’s Hong Singh index topped 25,000 for the first time since 2022 driven by Chinese tech giants. Shares of e-commerce companies Alibaba and JD.com as well as food delivery provider Muan all jumped today. This comes after Taiwanese chip giant TSMC reported record earnings and also the news that Nvidia would now be allowed to sell chips to China again. Elsewhere in the region, Korea’s Cosby rose 0.7%, China’s CSI 300 rose 0.7%, Australia’s ASX 200 fell 1%, India’s Nifty50 rose 0.3% and Singapore’s STI rose 0.4%. Meanwhile, the Singapore dollar is under pressure as the US is looking at tariffs on pharmaceuticals and semiconductors, two of Singapore’s key export industries. Economists expect that the monetary authority of Singapore will move to a more accommodative policy setting this month to support the economy. They also predict that the Singapore dollar may weaken further to 1.3 against the US dollar, especially if the US Federal Reserve delays rate cuts further. That’s it for today. For more business news and market updates, visit bt.sg. This is a podcast by the Business Times. Find more BT podcasts at business times.com.sg/mpodcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. This podcast is meant to provide general information only. PH Media accepts no liability for loss arising from any reliance on the podcast or use of third parties products and services. Please consult professional advisers for independent advice.
Market news for July 21, 2025: Hong Kong leads stocks higher; Japanese yen gains (https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/capital-markets-currencies/asia-hong-kong-leads-stocks-higher-yen-gains-ishiba-vows-stay) as Prime Minister vows to stay on after election loss; Singapore dollar faces pressure (https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/singapore/singapore-dollar-faces-pressure-us-tariffs-policy-shift) from US tariffs, policy shift.
Synopsis: Market Focus Daily is a closing bell roundup by The Business Times that looks at the day’s market movements and news from Singapore and the region.
Written and hosted by: Emily Liu (emilyliu@sph.com.sg)
Produced and edited by: Chai Pei Chieh & Claressa Monteiro
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