Asian stocks largely climb and Tokyo reaches an all-time high, following new peaks set on Wall Street

Asian Markets Climb, Led by Japan's Strong Performance

Asian stock markets mostly advanced on Tuesday, with Japan taking the lead after Wall Street set new highs. While U.S. futures saw slight declines, oil prices moved upward.

Japan's Nikkei Hits Record High

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 soared by 3.1%, reaching a new intraday peak of 53,814.79 as trading resumed following a holiday. The rally was fueled by technology shares, with Advantest, a semiconductor testing equipment producer, jumping 8.5%. Tokyo Electron, a chip manufacturer, climbed 8.3%, and SoftBank Group gained 4.3%.

Market participants are also watching closely for signs of a possible early election. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is anticipated to call a snap election to reinforce her policy agenda, particularly regarding increased government spending.

Other Major Asian Markets

• Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 1% to 26,877.01. GigaDevice Semiconductor, a Chinese chip designer, saw its shares surge 54% during its debut on the Hong Kong exchange. Meanwhile, the Shanghai Composite slipped marginally by less than 0.1% to 4,163.84.
• South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.6% to 4,651.67, setting new intraday records.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.8% to reach 8,830.60.
• Taiwan’s Taiex was up 0.5%.
• India’s Sensex declined by 0.3%.

Wall Street Update and Fed Developments

On Wall Street, investor optimism about potential interest rate cuts appeared to outweigh concerns about the Federal Reserve’s independence. Many expect President Donald Trump to succeed in urging the Fed to lower rates more aggressively, which could make borrowing cheaper and support higher stock prices.

Tensions between Trump and Fed Chair Jerome Powell intensified after the Department of Justice issued a subpoena to the Fed and threatened criminal charges related to Powell’s testimony about renovations at the central bank’s headquarters.

On Monday, the S&P 500 edged up nearly 0.2% to 6,977.27, marking a fresh all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also rose 0.2% to 49,590.20, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.3% to 23,733.90.

President Trump has consistently advocated for deeper rate cuts to lower borrowing costs, even after the Fed reduced rates three times in 2025. The White House clarified on Monday that Trump did not instruct the Justice Department to investigate Powell.

Corporate Highlights

Alphabet, the parent company of Google, saw its shares rise 1%, pushing its market capitalization above $4 trillion. The gains followed Apple’s announcement that it would integrate Google’s Gemini AI into Siri as part of a new partnership.

Credit card issuers experienced declines after Trump proposed a one-year 10% cap on credit card interest rates, a move that could impact their earnings. Synchrony Financial dropped 8.4%, Capital One Financial slid 6.4%, and American Express fell 4.3%.

Commodities and Currencies

• Early Tuesday, gold prices slipped by 0.2%, while silver gained 0.8%.
• The U.S. dollar strengthened to 158.72 yen from 158.07 yen, hovering near its highest level in a year.
• The euro edged down to $1.1666 from $1.1667.

Reporting contributed by Stan Choe, AP Business Writer.