(Changes dateline, updates to Asia open)

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Global stocks up after Big Tech earnings

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Dollar edges higher, gold hits record on tariff worries

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Fed keeps U.S. rates steady, ECB cuts them

By Lawrence Delevingne and Ankur Banerjee

SINGAPORE/BOSTON, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Asian shares

wavered on Friday, weighed down by the return of tech-heavy

South Korean stocks from holidays, but relatively strong

earnings from U.S. tech giants kept risk sentiment intact while

tariff threats pushed the dollar and gold prices higher.

Investors were also weighing central bank actions this week

in which the Federal Reserve held rates steady on Wednesday, in

line with expectations, with Fed Chair Jerome Powell saying

there would be no rush to cut them again. The European Central

Bank on the other hand cut interest rates on Thursday.

With markets in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan still

closed for the Lunar New Year, the return of South Korea grabbed

the spotlight in Asia. The benchmark KOSPI slid 1%,

after China's DeepSeek unveiled earlier this week a breakthrough

in cheap AI models that triggered a global market rout.

Shares of Samsung Electronics ( SSNLF ), which projected

limited first quarter earnings growth on Friday, fell 3%, while

SK Hynix ( HXSCF ), a key supplier to Nvidia ( NVDA ), slipped 8%.

That left the MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares

outside Japan down 0.3% but still on course for

a 1% gain this month, snapping its three month losing streak.

Nasdaq futures rose 0.6% in Asian hours after Apple ( AAPL )

executives forecast relatively strong sales growth, a

sign the company will recover from a dip in iPhone sales as it

rolls out artificial intelligence features.

Technology stocks stumbled badly on Monday as investors

factored in implications from the low-cost Chinese AI model,

with shares of high-profile tech names such as Nvidia ( NVDA ),

Broadcom ( AVGO ) and Oracle getting pummelled.

But tech stocks have recouped some of those losses, with

CEOs of Microsoft ( MSFT ) and Meta defending massive spending, saying it

was crucial to staying competitive in the new field.

Vasu Menon, managing director of investment strategy at

OCBC, said the DeepSeek development may create some uncertainty

and put some pressure on valuations of AI players in the short

term, but it does not alter the medium to long term outlook.

"The need for increased AI infrastructure will continue and

any new computing capacity should get absorbed by increased AI

demand which could grow significantly in the coming years."

TARIFF THREAT

Data on Thursday showed U.S. economic growth slowed in the

fourth quarter, but remained robust enough for investors to

expect the Fed to lower rates only gradually this year.

Markets are pricing in 45 basis points of easing this year,

with traders getting comfortable with the idea of two rate cuts

this year, LSEG data showed.

Investor focus will now switch to the December U.S. personal

consumption expenditures (PCE) price index report, Fed's

favoured gauge of inflation, due later in the day.

President Donald Trump's policies remain a risk for the

Fed's policy outlook, and Saturday is likely to see new tariffs

slapped on Canada, Mexico and possibly China.

The Mexican peso and Canadian dollar

remained on guard ahead of the Saturday deadline set by Trump to

impose 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada.

In Japan, the yen was last a touch stronger at

154.19 per dollar, having already climbed more than 1% for the

week thus far. It was set to gain 1.9% for the month, which

would mark its best January performance in seven years.

Expectations of further rate increases from the BOJ this

year has boosted the yen, with Deputy Governor Ryozo Himino

saying on Thursday that the central bank will continue to raise

rates if the economy and prices move in line with the bank's

forecasts.

In commodities, gold rose to $2,799.71 an ounce to

hit record levels, and was on course for a 6.5% rise in January,

its strongest monthly performance since March.

Oil prices rose in early Asian trading on Friday as

investors weighed the prospect of U.S. tariffs on Canadian and

Mexican crude imports that could take effect this weekend.

Brent crude futures was 0.4% higher at $77.21 a

barrel. U.S. crude futures rose 0.5% to $73.13 a barrel.