Stocks rebounded after two days of tech-led losses in the US that were fueled by concerns that the artificial intelligence-driven rally had run ahead of itself. Gold extended gains as traders trimmed bets on Federal Reserve interest rate hikes.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 1.8%, with chips and tech stocks among the winners. Futures tied to the Nasdaq 100 Index rose 0.8% and contracts indicated gains also for European shares.
South Korea’s Kospi index, the world’s best-performing major equity benchmark this year, climbed 5% after a volatile start that saw it drop to near a technical bear market.
Shares of Samsung Electronics Co. climbed 8%, following a report that Anthropic PBC is in talks with the Korean company to manufacture a custom AI chip. SK Hynix Inc. advanced 9%.
Treasury futures edged higher in Asia after weaker-than-expected US June employment data and lower oil prices challenged expectations for Fed rate hikes. There’s no cash trading in Treasuries worldwide on Friday due to a US holiday.
The dollar weakened against most of its major peers. Friday’s equity gains offered some relief after a selloff in tech stocks, particularly chipmakers, fueled concerns that the AI-driven rally may have gone too far, too fast.
Even so, confidence in the technology’s long-term potential remains strong, with investors focused on whether earnings growth can justify lofty valuations and the billions of dollars being invested in AI infrastructure.
