Analyst recaps Asian stock markets' Friday performance

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index led regional losses with a 1.43-percent drop on Friday as technology stocks sold off, while Japan's Nikkei 225 surged 2.1 percent to another record high, powered by strong earnings from global tech giants, a market analyst said.

Hong Kong's stock market ended lower on Friday with the benchmark Hang Seng Index down 1.43 percent to close at 25,906.65 points.

The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index lost 1.91 percent to end at 9,168.58 points, while the Hang Seng Tech Index shed 2.37 percent to close at 5,908.08 points.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei stock index, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average, surged 2.12 percent to end at 52,411.34 points.

Timothy Pope, a market analyst, recapped stock market performances in Hong Kong and Japan on Friday.

"The Hang Seng was the worst performing regional index today, shedding 1.4 percent, (with) the losses mounting too ahead of the closing bell. But there too was a big sell off of technology stocks as investors were booking profits. SMIC was the biggest index decliner, down 5.3 percent. But we also had a bit of results-linked gloom. BYD stock was pumping the brakes after the EV maker revealed third quarter net profit down by a third compared to last year, and revenue down as well. Shares in BYD lost 3.5 percent," he said.

"And over in Japan of course the Nikkei 225 is going from strength to strength. Today the index added 2.1 percent, closing at another record high of 52,411 and change. And that puts the monthly gain for the Nikkei at 16.6 percent, which is absolutely huge and the biggest gain in more than 30 years. January 1994 was the last time we saw something like this," he said.

"But the gains were really helped along by the latest results and forecasts from the Magnificient 7 in the U.S. Amazon's cloud services revenue was rising, gains there continuing to grow. And Apple's predictions for the latest iPhone sales were beating expectations too. Now Japan's tech sector supplies a lot of these companies, and that's meant that just like in the U.S. and also in the Chinese mainland. They're the powerhouse behind the current rally. The big star today was the chip company SocioNext, which surged more than 16.5 percent," he added.

Analyst recaps Asian stock markets' Friday performance

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is deeply concerned about the U.S. rhetoric suggesting possible intervention in the situation in Iran, urging all parties to pursue diplomacy and dialogue in line with the principles of the UN Charter, his spokesperson said on Monday.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that his administration is weighing "some very strong options," including potential military action against Iran amid the unrest across the Middle East country.

At a press briefing Monday at the UN Headquarters in New York, Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN secretary-general, conveyed Guterres' alarm over the remarks.

"The rhetoric that we've heard around the situation in Iran, which is concerning to him (Guterres), and he encourages all to adopt a path of diplomacy and dialogue," said Dujarric.

"We push for dialogue, and I think the [UN] Charter is very clear on your question," Dujarric said when asked whether foreign intervention might help resolve the crisis. The UN Charter enshrines core principles including the sovereign equality of all states, non-intervention in the affairs of other states, and the peaceful settlement of disputes.

These norms were further reinforced by the 1970 Declaration on Principles of International Law, adopted by the UN General Assembly, which explicitly states that no state or group of states has the right to intervene, directly or indirectly, for any reason whatever, in the internal or external affairs of any other state.

Protests have erupted in several Iranian cities since late December over the sharp fall in the national currency rial and long-standing economic hardships. The reported death toll from the unrest on both sides of the security forces and civilians is mounting.

UN chief urges diplomacy amid US military threats against Iran: spokesperson