Asian markets rally as AI stocks and earnings drive gains

Asian stock markets closed higher on Wednesday, following a strong performance for artificial intelligence shares on Wall Street the previous day. South Korea's Kospi index jumped 6.8% to end the session at 6,023.73. The surge was fueled by major technology companies reporting better than expected results.

SK Hynix, a manufacturer of memory chips, saw its stock rise 11.4% to its highest point in two weeks. The company reported a record operating profit of 83.3 trillion won, which is equivalent to $62.8 billion, for the last quarter. This figure was nearly seven times higher than the previous year and exceeded market forecasts. Samsung Electronics shares also climbed 9.1%, ahead of its earnings report scheduled for Thursday.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index gained 1.1% to reach 63,954.19. Kioxia Holdings, another semiconductor maker, rose 9.6% in anticipation of its quarterly earnings release on Friday. The Bank of Japan is set to hold a two-day policy meeting on Thursday, where markets expect the interest rate to remain unchanged. In other regions, the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong recovered 0.2% to 23,089.22, and the Shanghai Composite in China edged up 0.5% to 3,666.50.

The rally in Asia mirrored moves in the United States, where AI stocks drove the S&P 500 up 0.6% on Tuesday. This move brought the index within 1.2% of its all-time high set earlier this month. Broadcom stock climbed 4% after announcing a $63 billion financing deal that will help Anthropic access its AI accelerators. Nvidia also contributed to the gains, rising 0.9%. However, Boeing shares fell 10.7% after the company reported a larger quarterly loss than analysts had predicted.

Investors are watching central banks closely during this busy week. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand kept its benchmark interest rate at 2.75%, surprising some market observers. In the United States, the Federal Reserve is scheduled to announce its interest rate decision Thursday. The Fed hiked rates for the first time in three years last month to combat inflation, but Wall Street expects it to hold steady this time. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note edged down to 4.99% from 5.00%.

Energy prices continued their upward trend. Brent crude oil, the international standard, rose 1.5% to $111.10 per barrel. U.S. benchmark crude increased 1.6% to $101.46 per barrel. Currency markets saw minor shifts, with the U.S. dollar sliding to 157.85 Japanese yen from 157.91. The euro traded at $1.1118, down from $1.1127.