Highlights
- ASX 200 closes 0.3% higher at 9,153.2
- Japan and South Korea advance as chip stocks rebound
- Taiwan jumps on strong TSMC revenue growth
- Hong Kong and mainland China lag as consumer concerns persist
Asian markets mostly rise as AI chip rally
Asian sharemarkets were mostly higher on Wednesday as renewed buying in artificial intelligence and semiconductor stocks outweighed concerns that hotter-than-expected US inflation could trigger another Federal Reserve interest rate rise.
Taiwan, South Korea and Japan led the regional advance, while Australian shares reversed early losses to finish higher and Hong Kong and mainland China remained under pressure.
ASX recovers to 11-week high
The S&P/ASX 200 recovered from an early decline to close 0.3% higher at 9,153.2, its strongest finish in around 11 weeks.
Technology, utilities and resources helped drive the recovery, with Life360 among the strongest individual performers, while weakness in some heavyweight miners had weighed on the index earlier in the session.
The Australian market overcame a weaker Wall Street lead after US inflation data revived expectations of another rate increase from the Federal Reserve.
US equity futures subsequently turned higher during Asian trading, helping improve risk appetite.
AI demand drives North Asian markets
Technology stocks led gains across North Asia, with Japan’s Nikkei advancing around 0.8% and South Korea’s KOSPI up roughly 1.5% to 2% during afternoon trading.
South Korean semiconductor stocks strengthened as investors returned to the AI trade after last week’s sharp volatility.
Taiwan was one of the region’s strongest markets, with the Taiex gaining around 2% as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company shares advanced.
TSMC reported October revenue of NT$586.9 billion, up 59.7% from a year earlier and 14.7% from September, reinforcing expectations for continued strong demand for advanced chips and AI infrastructure.
Hong Kong and China move lower
Greater China markets moved in the opposite direction, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng down around 0.8% near 24,350 and the Shanghai Composite around 0.2% lower near 3,655.
Investors were assessing subdued consumer spending during China’s Singles’ Day shopping period, with domestic demand continuing to lag the strength seen in exports and technology manufacturing.
Sales during the early stages of the shopping festival showed little growth compared with last year, adding to concerns around weak consumer confidence, falling property values and slower income growth.
Wall Street slips as inflation strengthens rate-hike case
Asian markets were working through a weaker US lead after all three major Wall Street benchmarks declined on Tuesday.
The S&P 500 fell 0.4% to 7,520.93, the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.7% to 25,065.87 and the Dow Jones lost 0.3% to 52,231.89.
October US consumer prices rose 0.4% month on month, above market expectations, while core inflation increased 0.3%.
The stronger reading pushed the US 10-year Treasury yield towards 5% and increased expectations that the Federal Reserve could raise interest rates again in December.
Technology stocks bore the brunt of the selling, with Nvidia dropping more than 5%.
Oil and gold rebound
Commodity markets stabilised during Asian trade after Tuesday’s weakness.
Brent crude recovered towards US$92 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate traded around US$86.40.
Gold rebounded towards US$4,070 an ounce after suffering a sharp fall in the previous session.
The Australian dollar remained around US$0.69, while the US dollar stayed firm against the yen as investors continued to reassess the outlook for US interest rates.
