Asian stocks rose on Thursday, mirroring the record-setting performance on Wall Street, driven by the ongoing enthusiasm for artificial intelligence technology.
U.S. futures showed a slight decline, while oil prices continued to climb.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index increased by 0.6% to 38,703.51. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng edged up 0.1% to 18,437.17, while the Shanghai Composite index dipped 0.2% to 3,059.31.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 advanced by 0.7% to 7,822.00, buoyed by data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showing a rebound in the country’s trade surplus in April, with exports down 2.5% and imports dropping 7.2%.
Taiwan’s Taiex surged 1.9%. Notably, shares of contract electronics maker Foxconn fell 1.6%, despite the company reporting a 22.1% year-on-year revenue increase in May, setting a record for the month.
In India, the Sensex rose by 0.8% following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s coalition securing a majority in the national elections. Conversely, Bangkok’s SET index fell 0.2%.
South Korean markets were closed for a holiday.
On Wednesday, the S&P 500 rose by 1.2% to 5,354.03, matching its all-time high from two weeks prior. The Nasdaq composite surged 2% to a new record of 17,187.90, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average, less focused on tech stocks, gained 0.2% to 38,807.33.
Nvidia’s market value surpassed $3 trillion for the first time, leading the AI-driven rally. Nvidia, whose chips are crucial to AI technology, saw its shares increase by 5.2%, bringing its year-to-date gain to over 147%. Nvidia joins Microsoft and Apple as the only U.S. stocks to ever surpass a $3 trillion valuation, with Apple reaching this milestone again after a 0.8% rise on Wednesday.
The surge in tech stocks helped offset a 4.9% drop in Dollar Tree’s shares, which matched profit expectations but missed revenue estimates. Dollar Tree is also considering selling or spinning off its Family Dollar business amidst challenges faced by lower-income U.S. households due to persistent inflation.
In the bond market, Treasury yields fell after mixed economic data. One report indicated growth in the U.S. services sector, surpassing economists’ expectations, while showing slower price increases in May. Another report suggested a slowdown in hiring outside the government sector.
Recent economic reports have highlighted the U.S. economy’s slowing growth under high interest rates. Wall Street has been hoping for such a slowdown to reduce inflation and prompt the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates. However, there is a risk of the slowdown triggering a recession, which would negatively impact stock prices.
Treasury yields decreased, with the yield on the 10-year Treasury falling to 4.29% from 4.33% late Tuesday and 4.60% a week ago. The next significant movement in Treasury yields and the overall market is expected after the U.S. government’s monthly jobs report on Friday. This comprehensive report is anticipated to show a slight increase in hiring, with hopes that the job market slows without leading to widespread layoffs.
In commodities, U.S. benchmark crude oil rose by 34 cents to $74.41 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the international standard, also increased by 34 cents to $78.75 per barrel.
The U.S. dollar climbed to 156.14 Japanese yen from 156.10 yen. The euro advanced to $1.0877 from $1.0868.
