Asia markets open lower; Dow hits record high

July 07, 2026 (MLN): Asia markets traded mostly lower on Tuesday despite Wall Street's record-breaking rally overnight, while U.S. stock futures were mixed after the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above the 53,000 mark for the first time.

South Korea's Kospi led regional declines, falling 7.53%. Japan's Nikkei 225 slipped 1.89%, while the broader Topix index lost 0.73%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 also edged 0.38% lower, according to CNBC.

In the U.S., Dow Jones futures rose about 50 points, or 0.1%, in early trading. Meanwhile, S&P 500 futures slipped 0.2%, while Nasdaq-100 futures fell 0.9%, weighed down by weakness in technology stocks.

Wall Street ended Monday on a strong note, with the Dow climbing above the 53,000 level for the first time in history. The Nasdaq Composite gained more than 1% as semiconductor stocks rebounded, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.7%.

Chipmakers led the rally, with Western Digital jumping 7% and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) gaining 6.6%.

Among individual stocks, Rivian Automotive dropped nearly 9% in premarket trading after announcing a public offering of 75 million common shares. SpaceX also slipped about 1% ahead of its expected entry into the Nasdaq-100 index.

Dell Technologies rose more than 4% after U.S. President Donald Trump encouraged consumers to buy Dell computers during a White House event. Meanwhile, Microsoft shares declined after the company announced plans to cut around 4,800 jobs.

Market participants said the rally continues to be underpinned by broad-based earnings growth and resilient investor sentiment.

Investors are now awaiting the release of U.S. trade deficit data later on Tuesday for fresh signals on the world's largest economy. No major corporate earnings reports are scheduled for the session.

Attention is also shifting to geopolitical developments ahead of this week's NATO summit in Ankara, where defense spending is expected to be a key topic after U.S. officials called on European allies to take greater responsibility for the continent's conventional defense.

Copyright Mettis Link News