Asian stocks rise as US inflation, tech spur gains
MSCI’s Asia-Pacific equities gauge climbed 0.5%, taking its weekly advance to 2.7%
Asian stocks experienced a fourth consecutive week of gains, buoyed by a slowdown in US inflation and a resurgence in the technology sector. The MSCI's Asia-Pacific equities gauge climbed 0.5% for the week, marking a 2.7% weekly advance. South Korea's Kospi Index led the region, with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix reaping gains for the week.
This optimism was fueled by investors' renewed bets on the artificial intelligence (AI) trade, following a sell-off in semiconductor stocks in July. MSCI's All Country World Index reached a record high this week, while the S&P 500 Index closed at an all-time high and the Nasdaq 100 climbed more than 1%. Yugo Tsuboi, chief strategist at Daiwa Securities Co., attributed the tech rebound to the easing uncertainty around US monetary policy.
US wholesale inflation cooled in July, with the producer price index rising 4.7% year-over-year, down from a 5.5% increase in June. The yield on the rate-sensitive two-year note remained steady at 4.15%. The market now prices in a 35% chance of a Federal Reserve rate increase in September. Despite concerns over West Asia, traders are focusing on the revival of the AI trade.
The Bloomberg gauge of Asian chip-related stocks rallied almost 1%, indicating strong sales and profit growth for hardware companies.
Written by urgent.news from Hindu BusinessLine's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
This story
This is one outlet's version. Read the fullest account.
