MSCI Asia ex-Japan Rises 0.4% as AI Hopes Offset $94 Brent, Ceasefire Jitters
Updated
Updated · Reuters · Jun 2
MSCI Asia ex-Japan Rises 0.4% as AI Hopes Offset $94 Brent, Ceasefire Jitters
3 articles · Updated · Reuters · Jun 2
MSCI’s Asia-Pacific ex-Japan index gained 0.4% in choppy Tuesday trade as investors returned to AI-linked stocks despite renewed doubts over the durability of a Middle East ceasefire.
AI sentiment got a lift after Anthropic confidentially filed for a U.S. IPO and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said supply can support strong CPU and GPU growth, even as constraints persist.
Brent crude eased 0.9% to $94.13 a barrel after Lebanon announced a partial Hezbollah-Israel ceasefire, but markets stayed wary because U.S.-Iran peace talks have repeatedly stalled since April.
South Korea added to the volatility: the KOSPI swung from gains to a drop of as much as 3.3%, while May inflation hit a more than two-year high and reinforced expectations of a Bank of Korea rate hike next month.
Overnight strength on Wall Street also underpinned risk appetite, with the S&P 500 rising 0.3% after U.S. manufacturing PMI climbed to 54.0, its highest in four years.