Tech Surge Lifts Asian Markets Amid US Economic Concerns

On Thursday, tech shares soared, driving gains across Asia's stock markets. Meanwhile, gold edged close to a record peak, and the dollar weakened in response to a disappointing U.S. labor market report, which has fueled predictions of forthcoming interest rate reductions by the Federal Reserve.

The U.S. government shutdown virtually guarantees that key monthly payroll figures won't be delivered as scheduled, although the private ADP employment data revealed a surprising drop in September jobs. Despite the data gap, traders are now pricing in quarter-point Fed rate cuts at the two remaining policy meetings this year.

This anticipation of monetary easing propelled Wall Street to new highs on Wednesday, with the Philadelphia SE semiconductor index rising over 2%. Notably, Japan's Nikkei, Taiwan's tech-weighted bourse, and South Korea's KOSPI experienced significant gains as tech sector giants like Samsung and Hynix announced partnerships with OpenAI. The scenario also pushed gold prices and Treasury yields lower while stabilizing oil prices amid the potential for increased sanctions on Russian crude.

(With inputs from agencies.)