SEOUL — Asian shares rose on Thursday, led by a sharp rebound in South Korean semiconductor stocks, as gains in U.S. technology shares and softer-than-expected inflation data eased concerns about near-term interest rate increases.
South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI climbed 4.19% to 6,855 by late morning, after opening nearly 3% higher, according to Yonhap. Samsung Electronics gained 5.48%, while SK hynix jumped 7.55%, extending a recovery in the chip sector after a sharp sell-off in July.
The MSCI Asia-Pacific equity index was up about 0.8%, with Samsung and SK hynix among the biggest contributors, while Japan’s Topix rose 0.5% and the Shanghai Composite gained 0.5%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was little changed, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.6%, according to market data reported by the Business Times.
The rebound in Korean chip stocks followed gains in U.S. technology shares overnight. The S&P 500 rose 0.26% to finish just below a record high, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.54%, Yonhap reported.
Investor sentiment also received support from U.S. inflation data released on Wednesday. Consumer prices rose 0.2% in July from the previous month, in line with economists’ expectations, while a measure of underlying inflation recorded its slowest pace since March 2021, according to the Business Times. The data reduced expectations of an imminent Federal Reserve rate increase.
Money markets were pricing in less than a 50% chance of a September U.S. rate increase, while the two-year Treasury yield fell two basis points to 4.18%, the report said.
South Korean shares have staged a substantial recovery from July’s sell-off. The KOSPI gained as much as 4.8% on Thursday, extending its advance from a July 30 low to about 22%, according to Bloomberg News data carried by NDTV Profit. Samsung Electronics and SK hynix each rose more than 5% in early trading.
The July decline had followed a sharp unwinding of leveraged positions in technology stocks, while renewed expectations for continued artificial-intelligence investment have helped restore demand for semiconductor shares.
The Korean won was trading at 1,415.1 per U.S. dollar late Thursday morning, up 3.4 won from the previous session’s close, Yonhap reported.
