Tech Stocks Power Gains as US-China Fears Ease: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) — Technology shares drove a broad rise in Asia’s stock markets on Friday as a plan for Donald Trump and Xi Jinping to meet eased nerves around a trade war.
An MSCI gauge of Asian shares was up around 0.5%, resuming a blistering rally this year that has pushed the index to all-time highs. Tech stocks were among the big drivers, with South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix Inc. up as much as 6.9%.
US and European equity futures also rose, partly supported by the upbeat mood. Shares in Intel Corp climbed in post-market trading Thursday in New York after an upbeat revenue forecast.
Semiconductor stocks also led the gains in China on the nation’s renewed emphasis on tech self-reliance. The tech-heavy STAR 50 Index rallied more than 3%. Oil prices fell ahead of US inflation data. A gauge of the dollar edged higher, while gold fell.
The broad rally was helped by a White House announcement that President Trump will meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, a chance for cooler heads to prevail after a recent flare-up in trade tensions. The two leaders will talk next Thursday on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, their first face-to-face meeting since Trump returned to power.
“The confirmation of a Xi–Trump meeting gave markets a clear reason for a relief rally today,” said Hebe Chen, an analyst at Vantage Markets in Melbourne. “Not from hopes of warmer U.S.–China relations ahead, but from the perception that any progress is better than stalemate, and that a new deal before the truce deadline now appears more attainable.”
Chinese officials pledged to “greatly increase” the country’s strength and capacity for self-reliance in science and technology in the next five years, according to a communique released Thursday after a four-day conclave of the Communist Party’s Central Committee. Although the statement contained few surprises for investors, it confirmed Beijing’s commitment to bolster the tech sector.
Gains for Chinese semiconductor firms in the past few months partly reflect their broadening appeal among investors, Phelix Lee, an equity analyst at Morningstar, said on Bloomberg TV.
“As the trade gains momentum and the cycle swings upward, we’ll gradually see more interest from retail investors and some non-tech focused investors,” he said.
The Canadian dollar weakened after Trump said the US would halt all trade negotiations with its northern neighbor, citing an anti-tariff advertisement funded by the government of Ontario.
Investors are now turning their attention to a delayed inflation report from the US, which will be released on Friday. The cross-asset moves overnight suggest investors are optimistic the inflation reading won’t be a major drag on global markets that have zoomed higher over the past month.
Treasuries were largely steady on Friday. They had snapped a three-day rally during overnight trading as yields rose across the curve, with the 10-year climbing five basis points to 4%.
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Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
S&P 500 futures rose 0.2% as of 1:27 p.m. Tokyo time Japan’s Topix rose 0.7% Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was little changed Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.6% The Shanghai Composite rose 0.4% Euro Stoxx 50 futures rose 0.2% Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro was little changed at $1.1607 The Japanese yen fell 0.2% to 152.89 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 7.1283 per dollar Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin rose 1.3% to $111,031.79 Ether rose 2.3% to $3,920.58 Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.00% Japan’s 10-year yield declined one basis point to 1.655% Australia’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 4.14% Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.4% to $61.53 a barrel Spot gold fell 0.4% to $4,108.64 an ounce This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Winnie Hsu.
©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
