Most Asian stock markets extended sharp gains on Tuesday, with Japanese shares hitting fresh record highs as technology and chipmaking stocks continued to rally, while South Korean equities edged lower from peaks ahead of Samsung earnings later this week.
Wall Street ended higher on Monday, with major indexes climbing on energy sector gains after the U.S. attacked oil-rich OPEC member Venezuela and captured its leader.
U.S. stock index futures were largely unchanged during Asia hours on Tuesday.
TOPIX hits fresh record high; chip stocks extend rally
Japan’s TOPIX index jumped 1.5% to a record high of 3,534.46 points, supported by broad-based buying across technology, industrial, and export-oriented stocks.
The Nikkei 225 also hovered near record peaks, up 0.7%, underpinned by heavyweight semiconductor and electronics names.
Chipmaker Renesas Electronics Corp (TYO:6723) rose 3%, while Rohm Ltd (TYO:6963) added more than 2%.
Across the region, technology and chipmakers led gains, extending momentum built late last year. Investors continued to position for surging AI demand, particularly from data centres and advanced computing, while an ongoing supply crunch in key chip segments has bolstered pricing power and earnings expectations for major producers.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng advanced 1.2%, with Hang Seng TECH sub-index climbing nearly 2%.
In Mainland China, the blue chip Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 rose 0.5%, while the Shanghai Composite index gained 0.6%.
Samsung results awaited for chip demand outlook
South Korea’s KOSPI slipped 0.4% from record highs reached in the previous session, as some investors locked in profits and adopted a more cautious stance ahead of Samsung Electronics’ earnings report due later this week.
Markets are closely watching the results for guidance on memory chip pricing and AI-driven demand trends. Despite the slight pullback, South Korean equities remained near elevated levels, reflecting continued optimism around the semiconductor cycle.
Elsewhere in Asia, sentiment was also supported by a positive lead from the U.S.
Singapore’s Straits Times Index rose 0.8% on Tuesday, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged down 0.4%.
Futures tied to India’s Nifty 50 traded marginally lower before market open.
Source: Investing