Stocks Rise on AI Hopes Despite China’s Fears – Asia Market Wrap
Asian markets moved higher as optimism about increased AI spending under Trump countered concerns about the impact of tariffs in China.
Shares in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan rose in response to Trump’s promise for an AI investment drive, which boosted regional technology companies. However, Chinese stocks defied the trend when the US president stated that he was still mulling a 10% tariff on all Chinese goods. This fuelled a fall of up to 1.3% in China’s benchmark CSI 300 Index.
The different fates of Asian stock markets highlight the challenging concerns investors will have to consider in the coming months, as the Trump administration is anticipated to enact a series of substantial policy changes. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index was up almost 0.1%.
US 10-year Treasury yields rose one basis point after plummeting 5 bps in the previous session. The Dollar climbed against all Group-of-10 peers, while the Chinese Yuan, both onshore and offshore, performed poorly in Asia’s currency market.
In other news from Asia, the BoJ is expected to hike interest rates at its policy meeting this week, according to Kyodo News. This confirms recent predictions that the ECB will raise interest rates by 25 bps. The Yen was down against the Dollar.
