Asian shares mostly advanced on Wednesday, while oil prices declined, following fresh record highs on Wall Street driven by a surge in artificial intelligence-related technology stocks.
Tech Sector Leads Gains in Asia
South Korea's Kospi jumped nearly 5%, and Taiwan's benchmark also surged as the boom in artificial intelligence spurred heavy buying of computer chipmakers and other technology firms. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 climbed 1.3% to 65,816.62, briefly topping 66,000 for the first time in intraday trading.
Computer chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron's shares jumped 5.9%, and testing equipment maker Advantest gained 5.7%. The rally followed a 19.3% advance for Micron Technology, which lifted the S&P 500 after analysts at UBS raised their 12-month price target for the stock to $1,625 from $535. Micron closed at $895.88. Analysts forecast continued strength in demand for computer memory. Micron's stock has more than tripled this year and joined Nvidia, Apple, and Microsoft in surpassing a $1 trillion valuation.
Record Highs in South Korea and Taiwan
The rush to invest in AI has pushed share prices in South Korea and Taiwan to records this year. The Kospi in Seoul gained 4.9% to 8,457.09, an all-time high, as Samsung Electronics' shares soared 7%. In Taiwan, the Taiex surged 2.7%. Elsewhere, Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 0.7% to 25,426.92, and the Shanghai Composite index shed 0.2% to 4,136.87. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.1% to 8,662.10.
Wall Street Records and Oil Price Decline
On Tuesday, U.S. stocks rose to records: the S&P 500 climbed 0.6% to 7,519.12, the Nasdaq composite rallied 1.2% to a record 26,656.18, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.2% to 50,461.68. U.S. stocks caught up with global gains after President Donald Trump said negotiations were “proceeding nicely” with Iran on ending their war, though fighting continues. Oil prices have been central to market action since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran in late February, closing the Strait of Hormuz and driving up inflation.
Hopes for a deal to improve oil flow lifted stocks of companies with high fuel costs: United Airlines rose 6%, and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings gained 4.9%. However, U.S. consumer confidence edged downward in May, though less than expected, following a record low sentiment report. Early Wednesday, Brent crude fell 94 cents to $95.73 a barrel, and U.S. crude dropped $1.35 to $92.54. Lower oil prices pulled bond yields down, with the 10-year Treasury yield falling to 4.48% from 4.56%. The U.S. dollar slipped to 159.28 Japanese yen, and the euro rose to $1.1636.
