Asian stocks rally as Wall Street rebounds, oil prices ease

On Monday, US stocks surged as falling oil prices quelled inflation concerns and helped the S&P 500 recover from its steepest weekly decline since April 2025, while technology shares were buoyed even as AI leader Nvidia declined amid controversy surrounding its chief executive officer, Jensen Huang. During the session, all 11 major S&P 500 sector indexes climbed higher, with nine posting gains of over one percent.

Industrials and consumer discretionary sectors led the rally, each rising more than three percent. Despite the broader market rally, Nvidia's shares fell 4.20 percent and closed at their lowest level since April 7, as investors questioned CEO Huang's future at the AI chipmaker following an internal investigation into a potential foreign intelligence targeting him.

The AI narrative may persist, but Democrats are unlikely to stifle AI's growth; they can implement regulations, but they cannot stop the technology, according to Ken Polcari, partner and chief market strategist at SlateStone Wealth in Florida. A sharp decline in crude oil prices further supported the market's optimism, easing worries about price pressures, especially as US President Donald Trump downplayed the possibility of renewed strikes on Iran.

Oil prices fell, contributing to the market's bullish momentum. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 1,104.02 points, or 2.15 percent, to 52,389.75, the S&P 500 gained 173.08 points, or 2.35 percent, to 7,549.94, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 673.71 points, or 2.74 percent, to 25,253.14. The S&P recorded its largest daily percentage gain since April 8, while the Nasdaq marked its biggest daily advance since July 30.

Inflation data, including the Consumer Price Index report for October and Producer Price Index, will be released this week. Some analysts suggested last week's AI stock decline was an overreaction, with risks low of extreme regulation of data center development, even with Democratic control in the US Congress. Meanwhile, chipmakers experienced a surge, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index jumping 6.90 percent after plummeting over 12 percent the previous week, its largest weekly drop since April 4, 2025.

Nvidia was the only decliner in the index on Monday, while Broadcom rose 8.80 percent and Advanced Micro Devices climbed 13.30 percent. Investment giant KKR's shares advanced 1.70 percent following a record-high quarterly profit, and Constellation Energy, an energy firm with AI-related exposure, surged more than 10 percent after exceeding adjusted third-quarter profit expectations.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 4.06-to-1 ratio and on the Nasdaq by a 3.34-to-1 ratio. The S&P 500 recorded 16 new 52-week highs and three new lows, whereas the Nasdaq Composite had 103 new highs and 164 new lows. Trading volume on US exchanges reached 18.98 billion shares, surpassing the 18.72 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.