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Asian shares were mixed Monday after the US and Japan confirmed they had acted to prop up the value of the Japanese yen against the US dollar, causing the yen to rise to its highest level since late last year. Oil prices fell sharply after US President Donald Trump said he would order US forces to refrain from attacks against Iran, claiming a deal to end the fighting in the Middle East was close. The dollar fell as low as 155.20 against the yen after Trump and Japanese officials confirmed they had intervened last week to curb the US currency's rise to 40-year highs against the yen. Last week it was trading near 164 yen. A weak yen helps to boost the profits of Japanese companies with big operations overseas, increasing their value in yen terms. It also has drawn foreign tourists who have enjoyed their strong purchasing power in Japan. But a cheap currency also weakens Japan's purchasing power overall, pushing up costs for the imports of oil and other goods needed to run its ...
South Korea's Kospi index jumped more than 15 per cent on Friday, tracking Wall Street gains, as artificial intelligence-related stocks bounced back after losses this week. US futures edged higher, and oil prices rose. In early Asian trading, the Kospi rose 15.3 per cent to 6,447.10. Shares of South Korean technology giant Samsung Electronics surged 21.5 per cent, while memory chipmaker SK Hynix soared 25.6 per cent. The Kospi index had plummeted more than 16 per cent on Tuesday and Wednesday on a sell-off of technology stocks in part over worries about an AI bubble and rising intensive competition from chipmaking rivals in China. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 also climbed 5 per cent in early Friday trading. Multinational investment holding company and OpenAI-investor SoftBank Group jumped 14.7 per cent, while chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron rose 9.3 per cent. Oil prices traded higher on tensions between the US and Iran, and as the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for oil transport, rema
Asian shares skidded Friday, with Tokyo's Nikkei 225 down 5 per cent as heavy selling of computer chipmakers and other AI-related shares dragged markets lower. South Korean markets were closed Friday, but shares in Taiwan also fell more than 5 per cent. Stocks related to artificial intelligence have been under pressure for weeks because of worries that their prices have shot too high and that voracious demand for computer memory and processors may not be sustainable if AI ends up not producing as much profit and productivity as promised. Oil prices surged as fighting in the Middle East intensified, while US futures slipped. The Nikkei lost 5.8 per cent to 62,945.97, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong shed 2 per cent to 24,514.29. The Shanghai Composite index was 1.6 per cent lower at 3,818.59. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 declined 0.7 per cent to 8,775.70. On Thursday, the S&P 500 fell 0.5 per cent even though nearly three out of every four stocks in the index rose after more ..
Asian shares were mostly lower Thursday and oil prices slipped despite a flurry of strikes between the US and Iran. US futures edged higher. Selling of AI-related shares weighed on benchmarks in South Korea and Japan. An interest rate hike by the Bank of Korea also contributed to a 6.6% tumble for the Kospi, to 6,816.70. It was the first rate hike by the BOK since 2023 and was aimed at helping curb inflationary pressures due to the Iran war. Memory chipmaker SK Hynix dropped 11.2%, while Samsung Electronics fell 8.2%. Taiwan's Taiex lost 0.3% ahead of the release of an earnings report by Taiwan computer chipmaker TSMC, which is often seen as a barometer for the global industry and for the boom in artificial intelligence. US futures edged higher. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 fell 2.9% to 66,767.64. Shares of Japanese memory chipmaker Kioxia plummeted 13.5%. Chipmaking equipment company Tokyo Electron dropped 5.2%, while chip testing equipment maker Advantest gave up 5.6%. SoftBank Group s