Asian stocks rebound as oil slides, Nvidia earnings loom; Thai rate decision due
Asian stocks mostly rebounded on Wednesday as falling oil prices eased inflation concerns and technology shares recovered ahead of Nvidia’s earnings, while Thailand prepared to announce its interest-rate decision.
Wall Street ended higher overnight as technology stocks rebounded ahead of Nvidia’s earnings. U.S. equity futures were little changed in Asian trading on Wednesday, with S&P 500 Futures down around 0.03% and Nasdaq 100 Future’s traded flat as investors awaited Nvidia’s results and the latest PCE inflation data.
The improvement followed a sharp selloff in Asian technology shares last week, when elevated Treasury yields and concerns over stretched AI valuations prompted investors to take profits. Nvidia, which had suffered a seven-session losing streak, rebounded on Wall Street ahead of its results later Wednesday.
The chipmaker is expected to report quarterly revenue of about $92 billion, with investors focused on whether the massive spending on AI infrastructure across the technology industry is generating sufficient returns.
Asian tech rebounds as Nvidia takes center stage
The MSCI AC Asia Pacific climbed about 1%, with South Korea’s KOSPI rising 2.1% and Japan’s Nikkei 225 gaining 0.8%. The broader TOPIX added 0.5%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.7%, the CSI 300 gained 1.1% and the Shanghai Composite advanced 0.7%.
South Korean memory-chip makers led the recovery, with SK Hynix rising 2.8% and Samsung Electronics gaining 3.11%. Both stocks had been hit heavily during last week’s semiconductor rout and remain particularly sensitive to Nvidia’s results because of their exposure to high-bandwidth memory used in AI data centers.
Japan’s technology complex was more mixed. Largan Precision surged 9.97%, while Sony gained 1.8% and TDK rose 0.3%. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing added 0.83%, although Kioxia fell 1% and LG Innotek declined 2%.
Chinese technology shares also advanced broadly, with SMIC up 4.4%, Xiaomi 4.3%, Meituan 2.2%, Tencent 1%, Baidu 1.4% and Alibaba 1.5%. Cambricon gained 2.2% and NAURA rose 1.3%.
The rebound came as Brent crude fell about 2.6% to around $86.25 a barrel after Iran and Oman discussed an interim framework aimed at restoring some shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Brent is down around 8.5% this week, easing concerns that the Middle East conflict could generate another inflation shock.
Australia inflation, Thailand rate decision in focus
Consumer prices in Australia rose 3.5% year over year in July, above expectations for 3.3%, while trimmed mean inflation held at 3.6%, also exceeding forecasts.
The data prompted markets to raise the probability of an RBA rate hike in September, putting pressure on Australian bonds even as the broader retreat in oil prices offered some relief to inflation-sensitive assets.
The S&P/ASX 200 was around 0.2% lower in early afternoon trade, underperforming most regional markets, while the Australian dollar strengthened.
Investors are also awaiting Thailand’s central bank decision later Wednesday. The Bank of Thailand is widely expected to leave its benchmark rate unchanged at 1%, following its June decision to hold rates at that level.
Beyond Asia, U.S. investors will receive the Federal Reserve’s preferred PCE inflation reading later Wednesday, while Fed Chair Kevin Warsh’s Jackson Hole speech on Friday could offer clues on the path for interest rates.
Lower oil prices also helped push Treasury yields lower, with the U.S. 10-year yield around 4.63% after falling 6.5 basis points on Tuesday. Government bonds in Japan and New Zealand also advanced, although Australian yields moved higher after the country’s July inflation data came in hotter than expected.
