(Sharecast News) - Asia-Pacific markets closed higher on Thursday as surging oil prices reflected escalating tensions in the Middle East, while investors assessed corporate earnings and concerns over artificial intelligence spending.
Brent crude futures were last up 4.52% on ICE at $98.32 per barrel, and the NYMEX quote for West Texas Intermediate rose 3.89% to $90.21 after Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi group claimed attacks on two Saudi tankers in the Red Sea and US president Donald Trump threatened strikes on Iranian infrastructure.
"Markets are still buying the AI story, but oil is making the macro backdrop harder to ignore," said Patrick Munnelly, market strategy partner at TickMill.
"Asian chipmakers extended their rebound as investors leaned back into the long-term demand case for AI infrastructure, yet Brent's push toward $96.50 per barrel has now largely erased the dovish rates reaction to last week's soft US inflation data.
"The equity tape looks resilient on the surface, but the rates market is quietly being forced back toward the energy-shock playbook."
Stock markets close higher across region
Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 0.46% to 66,422.60 and the Topix rose 0.51% to 4,053.88.
Sumitomo Metal Mining advanced 5.07%, Lasertec added 4.98% and Advantest climbed 4.11%.
China's Shanghai Composite rose 0.25% to 3,876.78, while the Shenzhen Component increased 0.44% to 14,123.31.
Shandong Nanshan Aluminium gained 10.11%, Befar Group rose 10.09% and Asia Cuanon Technology Shanghai advanced 10.07%.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index climbed 1.28% to 25,210.81, led by gains of 6.28% for Aluminium Corporation of China, 5% for Sands China and 4.36% for Meituan.
South Korea's Kospi 100 surged 4.27% to 8,814.24.
LS Industrial Systems jumped 17.26%, Samsung Engineering gained 12.95% and Hanwha Systems rose 12.6%.
The country's economy expanded 0.6% quarter on quarter in the second quarter, slowing from 1.8% but beating expectations of 0.4%, as 1.4% export growth offset pressure from the Middle East conflict.
Imports rose 0.8%, private consumption increased 0.4%, government spending grew 0.2%, intellectual property investment climbed 3.3% and facility investment rose 0.2%, while construction investment fell 0.2%.
Annual GDP growth eased to 3.7% from 3.8%, ahead of forecasts of 3.5%.
"The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 1%, while South Korea's Kospi rallied 3.7%, led again by Samsung and SK Hynix, both up more than 3%," Munnelly added.
"The regional recovery reflects renewed conviction that AI infrastructure spending remains a durable earnings driver, particularly for memory and advanced chip suppliers.
"After last week's forced selling and valuation scare, the market has been quick to return to the names with the clearest exposure to AI capex."
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 added 0.18% to 8,839.00, with Generation Development Group soaring 37.13%, Paladin Energy rising 11.61% and James Hardie Industries gaining 6.14%.
Employment in Australia increased by 76,300 to a record 14.82m in June, well above forecasts for a 15,000 rise, as full-time employment grew by 29,300 and part-time jobs increased by 47,000.
The employment-to-population ratio rose to 64.0% from 63.7%, while participation increased to 67.0% from 66.7%.
Employment was 252,000, or 1.7%, higher than a year earlier.
Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 rose 0.23% to 13,795.31.
Freightways gained 3.24%, Eroad advanced 3.03% and Stride Property added 2.52%.
Dollar stronger on regional peers
In currency markets, the dollar was last up 0.14% on the yen to trade at JPY 163.38, as it gained 0.01% against the Aussie to AUD 1.4294 and advanced 0.35% on the Kiwi to change hands at NZD 1.7248.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
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