Nvidia's "handover" eased AI concerns, Japanese and Korean technology stocks strengthened, the Korean stock index reached a new high, and spot gold stood at 5200

# Ye Huiwen, Bao Yilong

Source: Wall Street Insights

NVIDIA’s strong earnings report lifted Asian tech stocks across the board, with the MSCI Asia Pacific Index rising 1% to a record high. South Korea’s SK Hynix gained more than 2%, Samsung Electronics rose over 5%, and Japan’s SoftBank climbed 4%. Analysts broadly remain bullish on the AI supply chain outlook, but some take a cautious stance on overinvestment risks and competitive dynamics, noting that market confidence recovery remains limited. The U.S. dollar softened, gold edged higher, and Bitcoin fell below $68,000.

NVIDIA’s robust quarterly results failed to fully dispel market doubts about the outlook for artificial intelligence investment. Global equities have shown fading momentum in their rebound from the earlier “AI panic,” putting the early-morning tech stock rally in Asia-Pacific markets to the test.

Initially boosted by NVIDIA’s earnings, Asian tech stocks surged across the board in early Thursday trading, pushing regional benchmark indices to all-time highs. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 1% to a record high; South Korea’s KOSPI climbed 1.77%, also hitting a new peak.

(KOSPI up more than 1.7%)

NVIDIA’s earnings had the most direct positive impact on Asia’s AI supply chain. As a key supplier of high-bandwidth memory to NVIDIA, SK Hynix rose more than 2% in early trading; Samsung Electronics gained over 5%. South Korean component maker LG Innotek surged nearly 14%, while Seoul Semiconductor jumped 13%.

(South Korea’s memory chip giants Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix continued their intraday rally)

Dan Ives, Senior Equity Research Analyst at Wedbush Securities, stated:

“The explosive growth in data center demand is a positive signal for numerous Asian supply chain players, including SK Hynix and Samsung.”

Dan Niles, Portfolio Manager at Niles Investment Management, noted that the current market landscape still favors semiconductor infrastructure stocks over software names, calling NVIDIA “the true king of all this infrastructure.”

Japan’s market also posted solid gains. The Nikkei 225 Index pulled back from intraday highs, narrowing its gain to 0.55%. The Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Information & Communication Index rose more than 2%, extending the previous session’s 0.58% advance. SoftBank Group rose 4%, and Sony Group gained about 3%.

(Nikkei 225 up 0.55%)

Andrew Jackson, Head of Japan Equity Strategy at ORTUS Advisors, said capital will continue to flow into AI-related names, favoring Japanese firms in gallium nitride and silicon carbide—such as Fuji Electric—as investors position for an extended data center construction cycle.

However, Bloomberg strategist Tatiana Darie pointed out that while NVIDIA’s results were broadly solid, some on Wall Street were disappointed by the lack of additional details on the company’s outlook and growth drivers. In her view, while the earnings report may ease AI-related anxiety to some degree, lingering concerns about competitive dynamics and the sustainability of infrastructure investment will persist.

Yugo Tsuboi, Chief Strategist at Daiwa Securities, also struck a cautious tone:

“It is becoming increasingly difficult for capital to flow back into this sector, unlike last year. Ultimately, market worries about overinvestment and the sustainability of spending have not dissipated with NVIDIA’s results.”

As NVIDIA’s after-hours gains narrowed and U.S. stock futures weakened, investor sentiment turned cautious. While digesting the better-than-expected earnings, markets are reassessing the sustainability of AI infrastructure investment. Although some Wall Street analysts acknowledged the positive implications of data center demand for Asian supply chain firms, NVIDIA’s failure to provide more forward-looking details disappointed valuation-sensitive traders. The market reaction suggests investors will require more concrete evidence of accelerating earnings before pushing the AI-driven rally further.

On the broader market front, the U.S. dollar continued to soften during Asia-Pacific hours on Thursday. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2%, and the ICE U.S. Dollar Index dropped 0.12%.

Gold rose 0.2% to $5,176 per ounce, as traders evaluated the impact of Middle East geopolitical tensions and U.S. tariffs on global trade. Bitcoin’s rebound momentum slowed, falling about 1% and dropping below $68,000.

## Mixed Earnings, Market Rally Pauses

According to Bloomberg data, NVIDIA forecast first-quarter revenue in the range of $76.4 billion to $79.6 billion, exceeding the average analyst estimate of $72.8 billion. However, this fell short of some optimistic projections that had called for figures near $80 billion. Additionally, the company signaled concerns about an overheating AI economy.

Following the earnings release, NVIDIA’s stock erased most of its after-hours gains before closing slightly higher by 0.2%. Meanwhile, Nasdaq 100 futures, dominated by tech stocks, fell 0.3%, and European stock index futures pointed to a modest opening decline.

Dilin Wu, Research Strategist at Pepperstone Group, noted that traders’ expectations for NVIDIA were already fully priced in, leaving limited room for further upside. She said that while the company emphasized strong growth in AI computing demand and temporarily resilient margins, it did not fully eliminate the potential threat to market share from specialized chips. Hebe Chen, Senior Market Analyst at Vantage Global Prime, also commented that the after-hours volatility indicated the market was demanding “another leg up” in performance, not just confirmation of the status quo.

## Macro Dynamics and Corporate Developments

On the corporate front, Bloomberg reported that NVIDIA has received licenses to ship small quantities of less advanced H200 chips to Chinese customers, marking a small step toward re-entering the world’s largest semiconductor market. In contrast, Salesforce issued muted sales guidance, exacerbating market concerns about the competitiveness of software stocks in the AI era.

In macro assets, the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2% on Thursday, and the ICE U.S. Dollar Index dropped 0.12%. The Japanese yen outperformed, rising 0.3% against the dollar to 155.91. Earlier, Hajime Takata, the most hawkish member of the Bank of Japan’s Policy Board, renewed calls for further interest rate hikes, pushing Japanese short-term government bond yields higher.

Jamieson Greer, U.S. Trade Representative, revealed that Trump will sign an executive order in the coming days to raise global tariffs to 15% “where appropriate.” Separately, the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield edged down 1 basis point to 4.04%, while Bitcoin’s rebound stalled, falling about 1% to below $68,000.

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