Asian markets surge on renewed AI investment hopes

Mettis Global reported that Asian stock markets advanced on Wednesday, with technology shares in South Korea and Japan setting the pace. Hopes tied to SpaceX's latest quarterly results revived enthusiasm for AI infrastructure companies, which had taken heavy hits in recent sessions. In South Korea, SK Hynix jumped 6.38% while Samsung Electronics added 5.03%.

According to CNBC, Elice, an AI infrastructure provider, climbed 29.92% after sliding more than 30% on its market debut the previous day. The recovery came after worries had grown that heavy spending on AI infrastructure might not produce sustainable profits, concerns sharpened by the weak debut. In Japan, Advantest gained 5.31%, Tokyo Electron rose 3.02% and SoftBank Group advanced 4.70%.

Broader indexes also rose, with the Kospi up 1.8% and the Kosdaq above 2%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 advanced 1.4%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was broadly unchanged. The gains followed a Wall Street rise driven by strong corporate earnings and softer oil prices, and futures also pointed higher, with Nikkei 225 contracts in Chicago at 65,355 against a previous close of 64,075.42.