Hong Kong

Globalmarkets were higher Tuesday after US stocks rallied, recovering most of their big losses from last week, while investors awaited US inflation data for October. US futures edged higher.

Oil prices extended losses, with Brent crude falling below $91 per barrel, the lowest level in three months, as President Donald Trump said Monday that the war in Iran “militarily is effectively over,” easing fears of further escalation.

In early European trading, Germany’s DAX rose 1.3 per cent to 26,267.19, while the CAC 40 in Paris gained 1.2 per cent to 8,233.30. Britain’s FTSE 100 was up 0.4 per cent to 10,830.12. The future for the S&P 500 rose 0.3 per cent and that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.7 per cent.

Global demand for AI chips remains robust as AI chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., or TSMC, reported after the market closed that its October revenue was nearly six-fold that of a year earlier.

In Asian trading, Taiwan’s Taiex jumped 2.5 per cent. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 closed 2.9 per cent higher at 60,459.58. South Korea’s Kospi climbed 4.4 per cent to 5,239.13. Samsung Electronics gained 4.7 per cent and SK Hynix climbed 6.7 per cent.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng rose 0.6 per cent to 24,584.81, while the Shanghai Composite index edged 0.1 per cent higher to 3,663.72. China’s exports in October climbed 35.2 per cent from a year earlier, while imports grew 41.6 per cent, according to customs data released on Tuesday.

That has put the country on track for another record for the year since the trade surplus for 2026 has already surpassed $1 trillion. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.1 per cent to 9,129.00. Investors are watching for the US consumer price index report for October. It is expected to show inflation rose 3.9 per cent, up from 3.7 per cent in September.

Shares in OpenAI investor SoftBank Group jumped 13.9 per cent ahead of the company’s earnings release. Its share price had fallen to its lowest level in a year on Monday. SoftBank Group reported a $7 billion loss for the three months through September as worries about investments in artificial intelligence hurt the Japanese technology company’s bottom line. Computer chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron surged 6.1 per cent and testing equipment maker Advantest gained 4.6 per cent.

On Monday, the S&P 500 jumped 2.3 per cent for a second straight gain after a wipeout on worries that Democratic victories in the US midterm elections could lead to a slowdown in the construction of AI data centres. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 2.2 per cent, and the Nasdaq composite rose 2.7 per cent.

Stocks were lifted by a decline in the price of Brent crude. It fell after President Donald Trump told CNN that a resumption of strikes on Iran is “highly unlikely” if the United States sees progress in negotiations toward ending the war.

However, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Sunday that Iranian demands had sometimes been “outrageous and ridiculous.” Nvidia’s shares rose 1.8 per cent in premarket trading early Tuesday. They fell 4.3 per cent on Monday after the chip company said it’s investigating after its CEO, Jensen Huang, acknowledged an intimate relationship with a business executive who, according to The New York Times, US intelligence determined was gathering information for China.

Nvidia’s board said it has “no reason to believe” that either national security or Nvidia secrets were compromised but its inquiry would examine all available information. China has rejected the allegations.

In other dealings early Tuesday, the price of Brent crude, the international standard, fell 2.2 per cent to $90.52 a barrel. US benchmark crude oil was down 2.2 per cent to $84.94 per barrel. The US dollar rose to 157.91 Japanese yen from 157.90 yen. The euro slid to $1.1249 from $1.1266.