Korea and Taiwan Lead Regional Gains

Asian equity markets advanced on Tuesday following gains on Wall Street. South Korea’s KOSPI climbed 4.0% to 5,219.37, while Taiwan’s Taiex gained 3.4%. The KOSPI’s percentage gain exceeded the Nasdaq Composite’s 2.7% advance recorded during Monday’s US session, according to the Associated Press (AP).

South Korean chipmakers also recorded gains, with SK Hynix rising 5.6% and Samsung Electronics gaining 4.6%.

Japan’s Nikkei Reaches 60,279.37

Japan’s Nikkei 225 advanced 2.6% to 60,279.37, above the 60,000 level. Among individual stocks, SoftBank Group jumped 15% ahead of its earnings announcement later in the day. Semiconductor equipment manufacturer Tokyo Electron gained 5.6%, while testing equipment maker Advantest rose 3.4%.

Hong Kong and Shanghai Gain 0.4%

Other regional markets also rose. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index increased 0.4% to 24,535.74, matching the 0.4% gain in the Shanghai Composite, which reached 3,673.54. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 increased 1.1% to 9,131.70.

Wall Street Records a Second Consecutive Gain

On Monday, the S&P 500 advanced 2.3%, marking its second consecutive daily gain and leaving the index 3.4% below its all-time high set last month, according to AP. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.2%, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 2.7%, according to AP.