Asian markets end mostly higher on Thursday
Date: 23-07-2026Asian markets ended mostly higher on Thursday ahead of next week's US Federal Reserve meeting, with traders expecting no change in policy rates. Market sentiments were improved further by renewed AI optimism, even as Brent crude oil prices jumped to trade more than $98 per barrel on fears of deeper supply disruptions after Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis claimed an attack on two Saudi oil tankers transiting the Red Sea. Chinese shares gained as investors rotated funds away from high-valued technology, semiconductor, and AI names into defensive stocks. Japanese shares rose as the yen languished near 40-year lows, despite expectations of faster Bank of Japan rate hikes and potential currency intervention. Furthermore, Seoul stocks soared after Google's parent company, Alphabet reported better-than-expected quarterly revenue driven by strong cloud growth, and lifted its forecast for capital expenditures to support booming AI demand. Investors also cheered by data that showed South Korea's economy grew faster than expected in the second quarter, driven by a semiconductor export boom.
| Asian Indices | Last Trade | Change in Points | Change in % |
| Shanghai Composite | 3,876.78 | 9.74 | 0.25 |
| Hang Seng | 25,210.81 | 318.15 | 1.28 |
| Jakarta Composite | 6,315.31 | -19.17 | -0.30 |
| KLSE Composite | 1,714.59 | 3.22 | 0.19 |
| Nikkei 225 | 66,422.60 | 307.00 | 0.46 |
| Straits Times | 5,581.76 | -13.66 | -0.24 |
| KOSPI Composite | 7,096.89 | 299.19 | 4.40 |
| Taiwan Weighted | 44,850.81 | 25.03 | 0.06 |