Asian Shares Surge on Middle East Deal Hopes

Asian shares rose significantly Wednesday as hopes for a Middle East deal lifted investor spirits. The US stock market rallied to records, driven by strong corporate earnings reports and eased oil prices.

The Tokyo benchmark surged over 3% to 66,068.24, with Kioxia leading the way at a 6.3% gain. SK Hynix followed closely behind, rising 6.7%, while Samsung Electronics advanced 4.1%. Taiwan's Taiex also climbed 3.1% as TSMC gained 3.5%.

Currency traders were optimistic about the market's performance, with Neil Newman, head of strategy for Astris Advisory Japan, saying 'Clearly today the market is rallying on the back of AI stocks.' He noted that while other sectors showed some activity, semiconductors and technology remained the focus.