Morgan Stanley has forecasted that India will emerge as a leading market heading into 2025, supported by strong earnings and macroeconomic stability.

On December 6, 2024, Asia-Pacific markets opened mostly lower, reflecting a decline of over 200 points in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and a retreat of the S&P 500 from its record high.

Japan's Nikkei 225 index fell by 0.5% at the market open, while the Topix index decreased by 0.4%, indicating a cautious sentiment in the region.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 index also experienced a decline, falling by 0.26%.

Contrastingly, South Korea's Kospi index gained 0.7%, although the Kosdaq index saw a decline of 1.2%.

Futures for Hong Kong's Hang Seng index were slightly higher at 19,637, compared to its previous close of 19,560.4.

In Japan, household spending rose by 2.9% month-over-month in October 2024, significantly exceeding economists' expectations, although it fell 1.3% year-over-year.

Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India is expected to keep its key policy interest rate at 6.50% as retail inflation reached a 14-month high in October 2024.

Despite the mixed performance in Asia-Pacific markets, UBS maintains a bullish outlook on U.S. equities, projecting significant earnings growth in the global tech sector driven by investments in artificial intelligence.

The S&P 500 has seen a year-to-date increase of 27.6%, positioning it for potentially its best annual performance of the 21st century if gains continue through December.

Oil prices saw a slight increase as OPEC+ members, led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, decided to delay production increases until April 2025 to stabilize the market.