Stock market today: Asian shares mostly lower, Japan’s Nikkei 225 falls 2.5%

BEIJING — Asian shares were mostly lower on Monday after Wall Street’s huge rally faltered last week.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index lost 2.5% to 38,704.10. The government has published revised figures showing the economy grew by 0.1% in the final quarter of the year, better than the minus 0.1% previously reported, but lower than forecast.

This means that the economy is not in a technical recession, but is growing at a snail’s pace.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.9% to 16,498.79 and the Shanghai Composite fell 0.1% to 3,043.67.

China’s National People’s Congress ends later Monday and no major policy changes are expected. The largely ceremonial body supports the decisions of the ruling Communist Party’s top leaders.

Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.2% to 2,670.75 and the S&Australia’s P/ASX 200 lost 1.5% to 7,727.60.

On Friday the S&The P500 fell 0.7% from its all-time high a day earlier to close at 5,123.69. The Dow Jones fell 0.2% to 38,722.69 and the Nasdaq fell 1.2% to 16,085.11.

Stocks initially rose after mixed U.S. labor market data boosted hopes that interest rates will come more easily later this year. It later turned loss-making after one of its most influential stocks, Nvidia, took a rare fall after a stunning rise that critics said was overstated.

Friday’s dip sent the S&P500 to a rare losing week, only the third in the last 19.

The jobs report shows that employers hired more workers than expected last month, but wages rose less than expected. It also said that job growth in January was not nearly as high as previously thought.

The economy as a whole is in a delicate spot, where it needs just the right amount of growth to avoid a recession but not increase pressure on inflation.

The ultimate goal is for prices to cool enough to convince the Federal Reserve to cut its key interest rate from the highest level since 2001 and ease pressure on the financial system and economy.

Lower interest rates encourage people and businesses to borrow, which can strengthen the economy. This stimulates prices for shares and other investments.

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell has said the central bank is “not far” away from a rate cut and just needs more data to confirm that inflation is actually falling to the 2% target.

The hope on Wall Street is that the remarkably resilient economy will boost corporate earnings growth.

On Friday, gunsmith Smith & Wesson Brands rose 29.4% after reporting stronger-than-expected earnings for the latest quarter. It said its shipments were growing faster than the overall firearms market.

But Nvidia was the main stock in the spotlight as it fell 5.5% for its worst day since May. It’s a rare occurrence for the stock, which is up nearly 77% this year after more than tripling last year.

As Nvidia has grown into the third-largest US stock, it has much more weight on the S&P500 than almost any other. That supported Wall Street on its way up, but leaves it vulnerable to pullbacks, especially as critics say stocks caught up in the market’s frenzy around artificial intelligence have risen too far, too fast.

Also on the losing side was Broadcom, which fell even as it reported stronger results than expected. It fell 7% after providing a forecast for next year’s revenue, which was slightly below analysts’ expectations.

Costco Wholesale fell 7.6% after sales for the latest quarter fell short of forecasts.

In other trading early Monday, U.S. benchmark crude lost 70 cents to $77.31 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Friday, oil prices fell 92 cents to $78.01 per barrel.

Brent crude oil, the international standard, fell 68 cents to $81.40 a barrel.

The US dollar fell from 147.07 yen to 147.02 Japanese yen. The euro was unchanged at $1.0941.