Asia markets rise on better AI sentiment, Trump speech awaited
#Asia markets #AI sentiment #Chip stocks #Trump speech #Monetary policy #Inflation #Nvidia #Bitcoin
📌 Key Takeaways
- Asia markets rose on improved AI sentiment with Korean chipmakers leading gains
- Investors awaited Trump's State of the Union speech and Federal Reserve policy signals
- Japanese yen strengthened after Prime Minister Takaichi expressed reservations about further rate hikes
- AI sector sentiment improved following Anthropic's new business partnerships
- Global memory chip shortage boosted Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix stock prices
📖 Full Retelling
Asia markets rose on Wednesday, February 25, 2026, with Korean chipmakers leading gains as investors doubled down on artificial intelligence investments while awaiting U.S. President Donald Trump's State of the Union speech that could reveal policy directions on trade, affordability, and Iran. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan climbed 1% in early trading, with Japan's Nikkei setting a record high at 57,956.92 and Korea's KOSPI surging nearly 1.7% to trade above 6,000 for the first time, fueled by a global memory chip shortage that has seen Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix stock prices double since October. The yen strengthened 0.12% against the dollar to 155.7 after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi conveyed her reservations about further interest rate hikes to Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda, creating uncertainty about the central bank's next move. Investors were also positioning ahead of Nvidia's fourth-quarter results after the U.S. market close and digesting comments from Federal Reserve officials who suggested the labor market might be stabilizing, with ANZ analysts predicting the Fed could start easing rates in the second quarter. Positive sentiment returned to the AI sector after San Francisco-based startup Anthropic unveiled 10 new ways for business customers to use its AI plugins, easing concerns about whether heavy capital spending on AI would translate into profits soon.
🏷️ Themes
Market Performance, AI Technology, Monetary Policy, Geopolitical Uncertainty
📚 Related People & Topics
Monetary policy
Policy of interest rates or money supply
Monetary policy is the policy adopted by the monetary authority of a nation to affect monetary and other financial conditions to accomplish broader objectives like high employment and price stability (normally interpreted as a low and stable rate of inflation). Further purposes of a monetary policy ...
Entity Intersection Graph
Connections for Monetary policy:
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Inflation
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Interest rate
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Federal Reserve
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Bank of England
3 shared
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Economic recovery
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Original Source
try{ var _=i o; . if(!_||_&&typeof _==="object"&&_.expiry AMD stock surges 14% on Meta AI partnership deal Bitcoin slips, wipes out 50% from October record high at session low Wall Street ends higher on tech rebound ahead of State of the Union address Software stocks rebound as Anthropic partnerships ease AI disruption fears (South Africa Philippines Nigeria) Asia markets rise on better AI sentiment, Trump speech awaited By Reuters Stock Markets Published 02/24/2026, 09:16 PM Updated 02/24/2026, 09:18 PM Asia markets rise on better AI sentiment, Trump speech awaited 0 AXJO 1.18% JP225 1.39% HK50 0.28% Japanese Yen US Dollar 0.16% NVDA 0.66% DX -0.09% CL 0.82% USH26 -0.11% KS11 1.89% TOPX 0.38% 000660 2.89% 005930 1.75% MIAPJ0000PUS 1.30% CSI300 0.60% TNX -1.40% LCOmdc1 0.00% By Scott Murdoch SYDNEY, Feb 25 - Asia’s financial markets were higher on Wednesday with Korean chipmakers leading gains, as investors double down on what they see as the safest bet on artificial intelligence , while the yen remained in focus. Investors rocked by volatility in recent months were also awaiting U.S. President Donald Trump’s State of the Union speech on Tuesday evening in Washington. Market participants are bracing for comments that could touch on policies from trade to affordability to Iran. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 1% higher in early trading. Japan’s Nikkei set a record high. It was up 1.1% at 57,956.92 in early trade after touching an intraday peak of 58,047.89. The broader Topix edged up 0.07% to 3,818.73. Korea’s KOSPI was nearly 1.7%, trading above 6,000 for the first time. The index is up 44% so far this year. A global memory chip shortage has seen Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix stock prices double since October, as cash has surged up the AI supply chain to the enormously popular chipmakers. Leading global chipmaker Nvidia Corp reports its fourth quarter results after the U.S market close on Wednesday. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng In...
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