Japan's Nikkei index is having a standout week, jumping 7.3%, its biggest weekly gain in five months, thanks to strong company earnings and major buzz around AI stocks.
The Topix index is also up for its best week since mid-August 2024, showing that Japanese markets are riding high right now.
Chipmakers and Tokyo banks rise
Chipmakers like Advantest (+5.9%), Tokyo Electron (+3%), and Kioxia (+2.9%) are leading the charge, even as some US tech stocks wobbled.
Tokyo's banking stocks are climbing too, helped by shifts in US interest rates.
As Maki Sawada, an equities strategist at Nomura Securities, put it, the comeback of semiconductor and AI-related shares is really powering this market surge.