Regional Asian Equities Erased Earlier Losses

Asian equities edged higher on Tuesday, rebounding from recent losses despite another challenging day for tech stocks on Wall Street. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.5%, buoyed by interventions to support the yen, which remains at a three-decade low against the dollar. Investors remain focused on the Federal Reserve's plans for interest rates and the upcoming release of the PCE index, while in the currency market, the yen strengthened slightly against the dollar. Taiwan equities are the worst performing largely being dragged down by TSMC.

• Japanese stocks rose as investors rotated into value stocks that have underperformed in recent weeks, including banks and automakers. The Topix Index increased by 1.31%, with banks and automakers as the biggest contributors. Toyota Motor Corp. led the gains, rising 2.3%. The Nikkei 225 advanced by 0.60%, although chip-related shares like Disco and Renesas were among the worst performers, following a decline in US peers.
• Korean shares opened higher on Tuesday as investors scooped up auto and chemical shares, despite a slump in technology shares on Wall Street. The Kospi is 0.37% higher . Car manufacturers like Hyundai Motors and Kia saw gains of 2.49% and 1.25%, respectively. Chemical shares also performed well, with LG Chem and SK Innovation rising. However, tech shares were bearish, with Samsung Electronics and SK hynix both falling.
• The Taiwan equities have opened lower, but well off earlier lows with the Taiex down 0.44% after earlier being down about 1.50%. The Philadelphia SE Semiconductor Index fell over 3% overnight which is weighing on local stocks.
• Australian shares are higher this morning with ASX 200 up 1.10%. This comes despite a mixed performance on Wall Street, where Nvidia and other semiconductor stocks extended their sell-off. Gains in the financial, real estate, and utilities sectors in the US helped offset losses in tech. Earlier, the Westpac Consumer Confidence rose 1.7% m/m from -0.3% rising to 83.6 vs 82.2.
• Elsewhere, New Zealand equities are 0.42% higher, Singapore equities are 0.22% higher, Thailand equities are 0.50% higher, Philippines are 0.40% higher, Indian equities are 0.20% higher, Indonesian equities are 0.30% lower, Malaysia are 0.05% lower