Asian stocks extend gains as US rebounds, chipmakers lead

SINGAPORE: Stocks jumped at ​the start of trading in Asia on Wednesday as investors took cues from a rebound in US ‌markets, shrugging off climbing oil prices as Houthi rebels threatened to open a front in the widening Middle East conflict.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 1.2% as South Korea’s Kospi jumped more than 6%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 1.9%, while S&P ​500 e-mini futures edged 0.1% lower.

Brent crude nudged 0.6% higher to $91.55 a barrel after two oil tankers carrying ​Saudi crude to Asia reversed course in the Red Sea on Tuesday after threats of ⁠attack from Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis.

“Equity markets shrugged off geopolitical risks, focusing instead on tech sector returns,” Westpac analysts wrote in a ​research report.

“After large losses in recent days, semiconductor stocks bounced back.”

Overnight, the S&P 500 was up 0.9%, snapping a three-day ​losing streak, driven by a rebound in semiconductor shares after data showed Korean semiconductor exports almost tripled during the first few weeks of July and a gauge of Taiwanese export orders for June topped estimates.

Market focus will turn to earnings from Alphabet, which is facing heightened investor scrutiny over ​the delayed launch of a model key to its AI ambitions, and Tesla, which is widely expected to report ​its first quarterly cash burn in over two years as its spending on AI and robotics soars.

Pharmaceuticals will also be in focus after US ‌President ⁠Donald Trump said all generic drugs brought into the United States will carry a tariff of 0% for two years from August 1, after which the rate will rise to 100% for one year and 200% thereafter.

The U.S. dollar index , which measures the greenback’s strength against six currencies, held near a one-week high of 101.20. Against the yen , the dollar was ​down 0.1% at 163.06 yen, weakening ​slightly after setting a ⁠four-decade high against the Japanese currency on Tuesday.

The jump in oil prices, which settled at a five-week high on Tuesday, did little to unsettle bond and currency markets ahead of central ​bank meetings next week. Among them, the U.S. Federal Reserve is set to keep ​its key interest ⁠rate steady for the rest of 2026, according to the median forecast of economists in a Reuters poll, though they said the chance of a rate hike is high.

Fed funds futures indicate that though one hike by December is probable, a hike of ⁠50 basis ​points or more by the end of the year is a coin ​toss, the CME Group’s FedWatch tool showed.

The yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury bond was up 0.2 basis point at 4.628%. Gold was up 0.5% ​at $4,097.67.

In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin was up 0.3% at $66,611.73, while ether climbed 0.7% to $1,936.18.