Chipmakers Lift Asian Markets After U.S. AI Stock Rebound

Asian stock markets opened higher on Monday following a partial recovery in U.S. artificial intelligence stocks. The rally came after a volatile week that saw global indexes drop as traders worried about the impact of midterm election results on tech infrastructure spending.

Taiwan’s Taiex index led regional gains with a 4.9% jump. The climb was driven largely by TSMC, the major computer chipmaker, which saw its shares surge 4.7%. Investors had sold off AI-related stocks earlier in the week on fears that Democratic victories would slow the construction of new data centers, particularly in Texas.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index finished the day 2.3% higher at 58,775.50. Chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron climbed 2.8%, while Advantest, a testing equipment manufacturer, rose 1.3%. Not all tech stocks fared well, however. SoftBank Group shares fell 4.2% as the company worked to salvage a $5.4 billion robotics deal with Switzerland’s ABB after Chinese regulators rejected the arrangement.

South Korea’s Kospi index gave back its morning gains, ending the day down 0.8% at 5,018.85. Major chipmakers Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix posted modest gains of 0.6% and 0.4%, respectively. These small movements contrast with the sharp swings these stocks have experienced over the past few weeks as investors alternately dumped and bought AI-related shares.

Other Asian markets saw smaller moves. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index edged up 0.1% to 24,507.83, and the Shanghai Composite added 0.3% to 3,660.79. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.1% to 9,029.70.

The regional relief followed a Friday session in New York where the S&P 500 rose 0.3%, trimming its weekly loss to 2.7%. That week was the worst for the index since April 2025, when President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs rattled markets. Nvidia, a central player in the AI race, climbed 2.8% on Friday after drops of 9.3% and 3.2% in the prior days.

Nvidia announced on Sunday that it is investigating reports that CEO Jensen Huang was the target of a foreign intelligence effort. The probe follows Huang’s acknowledgment that he had been intimate with a business executive whom U.S. intelligence determined was gathering information for Beijing. Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management noted that the scrutiny touches the intersection of U.S. technology leadership, China, and national security.

Despite the recent turbulence, the S&P 500 remains only 5.7% below its all-time high set last month. A report released Friday showed U.S. employers hired more workers than expected, signaling economic stability. Meanwhile, oil prices slipped early Monday, with Brent crude falling 1.8% to $96.60 per barrel and U.S. benchmark crude down 1.3% to $89.67.