From Investing.com:

Asian stocks rose in anticipation of U.S. inflation data, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 rallying to 34-year highs fueled by tech stocks’ positive earnings and dovish signals from the Bank of Japan.

The Nikkei 225 surged 2.5% to a 34-year high on strong earnings from major technology stocks and a more relaxed policy direction from the Bank of Japan.

Japanese chipmaker Tokyo Electron Ltd. surged nearly 11% after a strong profit for the December quarter and increasing demand in China, while SoftBank jumped 6.7% to a near three-year high, with gains extending to its chipmaking unit Arm Holdings whose U.S. shares surged 29%.

AI-driven gains in the chipmaking sector spurred strength in other Asian markets, with SK Hynix rising nearly 4% after tying up with Taiwan’s TSMC to develop new AI chips, and TSMC itself rising 1.7% in Taiwan trade.

Other Asian shares were slightly positive, with Australia’s ASX 200 rising 0.1% and Thailand’s SET Index leading gains across Southeast Asia with a 0.4% rise. India’s Nifty index, however, pointed to a muted open after a 0.8% decline to a near two-week low on Monday.



Read more: Asian stocks edge higher before CPI data; Nikkei skyrockets on tech strength By Investing.com