Iran Negotiation Hopes Boost Asia-Pacific Stocks; Korea Composite Index Hits New High, Tech Shares Lead as Oil Prices Continue to Fall

Signs of a resumption in negotiations between Iran and the United States bolstered market sentiment, pushing Asia-Pacific stocks higher on Tuesday morning. Technology shares led the gains, while international oil prices slid further amid expectations of easing tensions.

Wallstreetcn reported that Iran's Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, approved the dispatch of a negotiation delegation to Islamabad late on the 20th. According to Xinhua News Agency citing the U.S. Axios website, Vice President Vance is scheduled to depart for Pakistan's capital on the morning of the 21st Eastern Time, accompanied by Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff and the President's son-in-law Jared Kushner to participate in the talks.

Noriko Chen, a stock portfolio manager at Capital Group, stated:

Entering peace talks is clearly a positive signal indicating that some form of resolution is approaching. We expect inflation to be slightly above recent levels but do not believe it will have a major impact on the global economy.

While the Middle East situation boosted risk sentiment, strong export data from South Korea for the first 20 days of April provided additional support to the Asia-Pacific market.

According to Wallstreetcn, data released by South Korean Customs on April 21 showed that exports from April 1 to 20 grew 49.4% year-on-year, reaching a total of $50.4 billion—a record high for this period in history, surpassing the previous peak of $36.4 billion set in April 2022.

Driven by the boom in artificial intelligence and data center investments, semiconductor exports surged 182.5% to $18.3 billion, accounting for 36.3% of total exports and also setting a new historical record for this period. Exports of computer peripherals skyrocketed 399% to $2.2 billion, further confirming robust global demand for data center infrastructure.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose for 14 consecutive nights, marking its longest streak in over a decade. Elon Gu, a market analyst at Ultima Markets, commented:

The enthusiasm for semiconductors continues, buoyed by record highs in U.S. chip stocks, leading to a broad rally in the Asia-Pacific technology sector on Tuesday.

On Tuesday, Asia-Pacific stocks generally followed the rebound in risk appetite. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.5%, with roughly equal numbers of advancing and declining stocks.

The technology sector emerged as the primary driver of the current rally in Asia-Pacific markets. The MSCI Asia Pacific Technology Index jumped 2.1%, expanding its year-to-date gain to over 38%. Among them, South Korea's Seoul Composite Index rose 2.2%, hitting a record high.

Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix led the gains, rising as much as 2.6% and 4% respectively. The Korea Exchange Small-Cap Index briefly climbed 1%.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index had previously closed higher for 14 consecutive trading sessions, a winning streak surpassed only once in 2014. Fabien Yip, a market analyst at IG International, noted:

AI has returned to the forefront of market focus. As core hardware suppliers, Asian tech stocks are riding the wave of improving overall risk appetite.

Additionally, there was significant news at the corporate level. Wallstreetcn reported that Amazon announced an additional investment of $5 billion in Anthropic PBC and may inject up to $20 billion more in the future to solidify their partnership in the increasingly competitive field of artificial intelligence.

Aside from the Middle East situation, several macroeconomic events warrant investor attention this week.

Retail sales data for March will be released on Tuesday, with analysts expecting a significant jump in overall retail sales. However, excluding gasoline and automobiles, the data may indicate more moderate consumer demand, as soaring fuel costs have forced budget-constrained consumers to cut back on other spending.

Nominee for Federal Reserve Chair, Wo Sheng, is also scheduled to testify before the Senate Banking Committee at 10:00 AM on Tuesday. Wallstreetcn reported, according to a leaked draft of his opening remarks, Wo Sheng stated:

I believe monetary policy independence must be earned through action; better policy decisions depend on staying free from interference. I pledge to ensure the execution of monetary policy remains strictly independent.

The U.S. bond market saw little movement during the Asia-Pacific session on Tuesday, with the 10-Year Yield edging up 0.1 basis points to 4.255%.

S&P 500 futures rose 0.2%, following a slight pullback from record highs on Monday. Spot gold prices dipped slightly by 0.25% to below $4810.

Spot silver prices remained in a downward trend, falling 0.36% to $79.41.