TOKYO – Asian stocks largely saw gains during early Thursday trading, fueled by global market enthusiasm surrounding AI-related stocks and the semiconductor industry.
Leading the charge, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 increased by 1.6% to reach 68,609.92. Conversely, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 saw a decline, slipping 0.6% to 9,155.80. South Korea’s Kospi experienced a robust rise of 3.9% to 6,835.55. Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng edged slightly higher by nearly 0.1% to 25,453.45, and China’s Shanghai Composite advanced 0.4% to 3,961.82.
Investor optimism in the Asian markets was bolstered by Wall Street’s overnight performance, which closed just short of a new high on Wednesday. Stellar growth reports from several AI-focused companies surpassed analyst predictions for the spring season, and a new report indicated that inflation in the U.S. eased slightly last month.
The S&P 500 gained 0.3%, marking its first advance since hitting an all-time peak last Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average saw a slight dip by 21 points, or less than 0.1%, while the Nasdaq composite increased by 0.5%.
Performance among AI technology stocks was a significant factor in these gains, as strong profit announcements led to renewed hopes for sustained and impressive growth, justifying the substantial rise in their stock valuations.
It’s a return to strength for AI stocks, which have been veering on a roller-coaster ride. After surging to records, AI stocks came under pressure on worries that they shot too high. Investors wanted to see big spenders on AI prove their investments are yielding enough in profits and productivity to make them worth it. That in turn could lead to continued demand for chips and other AI infrastructure.
Treasury yields fell after a report showed that U.S. consumers paid prices for gasoline, groceries and other costs of living last month that were 3.4% higher than a year earlier. That’s higher than anyone would like, but it’s not as bad as June’s 3.5% inflation rate.
The deceleration could give the Federal Reserve more leeway to hold off on hikes to interest rates. The Fed’s members are notably split about whether they should have already begun hiking interest rates. But Wednesday’s update on inflation pushed traders to pull back on bets the Fed will hike its main interest rate at its next meeting in September.
That helped pull the yield on the 10-year Treasury down to 4.68% from 4.70% late Tuesday. It, though, still remains well above its 3.97% level from before the war with Iran, which sent oil prices and worries about inflation spiking.
In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude dipped $1.07 to $82.20 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard fell $1.01 to $87.97 a barrel. That swung between modest gains and losses Wednesday.
All told, the S&P 500 rose 20.30 points to 7,748.50. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 21.58 to 53,770.27, and the Nasdaq composite gained 143.04 to 26,588.49.
In currency trading, the U.S. dollar inched up to 159.43 Japanese yen from 159.41 yen. The euro cost $1.1525, down slightly from $1.1527.
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AP Business Writer Stan Choe contributed to this report.
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Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.com/@yurikageyama
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