Asian Markets Surge on Renewed AI Optimism and Easing Policy Uncertainty

Asian markets rallied on September 18 as policy uncertainty eased following the U.S. Federal Reserve's FOMC meeting, boosting investor sentiment across AI and semiconductor-related stocks. South Korea's KOSPI surged 2.66%, its largest single-day gain since September 7, with large-cap semiconductor stocks leading the rally.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's optimistic remarks on semiconductor demand revived investor optimism, which was further fueled by his comment that Nvidia expects to sell twice as many chips next year as it did this year. SK Hynix soared 6.42%, while Samsung Electronics rose 3.37% and SK Square gained 7.04%. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index's 3.1% rise the previous day also contributed to the surge in Asian semiconductor stocks.

The KOSPI's weekly gain was, however, tempered by concerns over elevated bond yields, which resulted in a 0.2% decline on a weekly basis. Financial and utilities stocks were weak, with Hana Financial Group dropping 3.2%, KB Financial declining more than 2%, and Shinhan Financial Group also falling.