Asian stocks climbed to a record, driven by renewed momentum in technology shares and easing geopolitical tensions. Oil slipped while the dollar weakened.
MSCI’s Asian equities gauge rose 1.1% to an all-time high, with South Korea — a bellwether for AI investments — jumping as much as 5% to a peak. Chipmaker SK Hynix Inc. surged as much as 11% to top $1 trillion in market capitalization.
Asian tech gains followed a Wall Street rally that lifted the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 indexes to all-time highs on Tuesday. Chipmakers led the charge, with Micron Technology Inc. surging 19% to also top $1 trillion in market valuation.
Elsewhere, expectations for the US and Iran to sign a peace deal helped Brent crude oil edge 0.5% lower to about $99.10 a barrel. A Bloomberg gauge of the dollar slipped 0.1% and Treasuries held their gains, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year holding at 4.48%. Gold was a touch higher, trading around $4,520 an ounce.
The moves underscored rising confidence in Asian chipmakers and tech firms seen as the “picks and shovels” of the AI boom. Optimism that the Middle East conflict may be moving toward a resolution also helped propel global equities to fresh highs, as traders bet easing geopolitical risks could temper inflation pressures.
“Tech and AI are paying no mind to the Iran tensions,” said Andrew Jackson, head of Japan equity strategy at Ortus Advisors. Micron’s strong rally on Tuesday following a bullish analyst report is a tailwind for any memory-related stocks, he added.
In geopolitical news, President Donald Trump said talks to extend a ceasefire and reopen the Strait of Hormuz are proceeding. Secretary of State Marco Rubio cautioned that any accord would likely take a few days to finalize.
Still, security in the waterway remained unclear after the two sides exchanged strikes overnight and US Central Command pushed back on reports that suggested the military was helping escort vessels.
“While we’d like to share the optimism, there have been enough setbacks in the process of crafting an agreement between Washington and Tehran that we’ll remain cautious until there is more tangible progress,” said Ian Lyngen at BMO Capital Markets.
Elsewhere, data showed US consumer confidence edged down in May as views of current economic conditions settled back amid rising prices due to the war. The Conference Board’s gauge fell to 93.1 after an upward revision to the prior month. The median economist estimate was 92.
Meanwhile, focus in Asia is squarely on technology, with SK Hynix sitting at the chokepoint of the global AI buildout.
Memory chips have emerged as a critical bottleneck determining how quickly data centers can expand capacity. Investors and analysts expect memory chip shortages to last through 2027, giving SK Hynix and rivals Samsung Electronics Co. and and Micron unusual pricing power over the world’s largest technology companies.
SK Hynix became only the third Asian company to reach a $1 trillion valuation, joining Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and Samsung, which crossed the milestone earlier this month.
“Market participants are placing their bets on peace and subsequently buying into very strong equity fundamentals,” said Kyle Rodda at Capital.com.
