Asian Markets Rally Driven by Chip Manufacturers
Most Asian stock exchanges are recording gains following the positive trend on Wall Street. SK Hynix shares are up 25% and Samsung is up 20% following strong reports from major tech companies.
Most Asian stock exchanges are recording gains following the positive trend on Wall Street and the release of strong corporate reports. SK Hynix shares are up 25% and are on track for their best day ever, while Samsung is up 20%. The Bank of Japan left the interest rate at 1% and warned against a potential rise in inflation.
Following notable gains yesterday on Wall Street and positive reports from Microsoft, Amazon, and Apple, most Asian stock exchanges are recording gains this morning, led by chip stocks: KOSPI is soaring by 14%, erasing the declines recorded this week (however, for the month as a whole, it is expected to lose 25% in July — its worst month since 1997). Shanghai is up 0.8%, Shenzhen is up 3%, Sydney is up 0.3%, and Nikkei is up 3.5%. The Hang Seng is down 0.2%. The MSCI index, which tracks Asian markets excluding Japan, is up 5%.
On the Seoul Stock Exchange, SK Hynix shares are up 25%, Samsung is up 20%, LG is strengthening by 11.2%, and Seoul Semiconductor is up 8%. This follows the optimism sparked by the Microsoft and Amazon reports. In Japan, there was also a rise in chip stocks: Advantest is up 18%, Tokyo Electron is up 9%, Disco is up 13%, Lasertec is up 12%, and Renesas Electronics is up by more than 10%. SoftBank shares, which invest in chips, rose by more than 9%.
Meanwhile, the Bank of Japan left the interest rate at 1% after the decision was reached by a vote of eight in favor against one dissenter, who wanted to raise the rate to 1.25%. The bank warned of a situation where core inflation in the country would exceed the 2% target in the second half of the year.
New York stock exchanges closed yesterday with notable gains led by technology stocks: Nasdaq jumped 2.8% after six consecutive days of gains, Dow Jones rose 1.2%, and S&P 500 strengthened by 1.7%. This was despite disappointing macro data, which indicated a slowdown in growth in the US, and against the backdrop of falling oil prices. Microsoft beat forecasts and reported 32% growth in the cloud, which led to a 15.5% surge. Intel jumped 11.3% after six red days in a row.
