- South Korea's Kospi rose over 5%, and Kosdaq gained 2% in early Asia-Pacific trade
- Japan's Nikkei 225 increased 0.34%, while Topix was mostly unchanged on Wednesday
- Japan's June exports grew 19.3% year-on-year, driven by semiconductor equipment shipments
Asian Markets Today | July 22: Asia-Pacific markets opened in the green on Wednesday. South Korea's Kospi led gains in the region, advancing over 5% while the Kosdaq rose 2%. Japan's Nikkei 225 added 0.34%, and the Topix was little changed. Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.12%. Investors monitored the latest US strikes on Iran and renewed diplomatic efforts to secure a ceasefire, with the Middle East conflict continuing to cloud the outlook for energy markets.
Japan exports in June grew at their fastest pace since November 2022, rising 19.3% from a year earlier, powered by shipments of semiconductor equipment and a weak yen. Shipments to Asia rose 22.7%, most notably reporting a 46.4% jump in exports to Taiwan compared to last year. Exports to China, Japan's largest trading partner, increased 17.6%, while shipments to the US climbed 13%.
US Markets
The major US averages snapped a three-session losing streak on Tuesday, supported by better-than-expected earnings from blue-chips including 3M and General Motors, which helped ease concerns about the health of corporate America. Chipmakers also fueled the rally, with the VanEck Semiconductor ETF climbing 4% as investors rotated back into artificial intelligence-related names.
Investors remain focused on whether strong demand for AI infrastructure and software will continue to justify elevated valuations across the technology sector as earnings season accelerates. Market participants will be watching closely for updates on tech and AI spending, cloud demand, corporate technology budgets and the outlook for the second half of the year.
Oil Prices
Crude oil prices inched higher in early trading on Wednesday as fears of further supply disruptions intensified after US forces said it began striking Iranian military targets for the 11th straight night and Kuwait reported attacks by Iranian drones.
Benchmark Brent crude futures rose 0.55%, or 50 cents, to $91.51 after markets opened on Wednesday, while the US West Texas Intermediate crude climbed 0.36%, or 30 cents, to $84.64 in low volume trading.
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