Asian Markets Advance as Chip Demand Offsets Inflation Concerns

Technology stocks helped lift markets across much of Asia on November 11, even as investors considered the impact of unexpectedly high U.S. inflation. Taiwan led the gains, while benchmarks in Japan and South Korea also advanced. Hong Kong shares slipped; mainland Chinese stocks posted mixed results, and Australia edged higher. India’s Sensex reached a six-month high.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. gained 3.1% after October revenue came in almost six times its level a year earlier, an indication that demand for chips used in artificial intelligence remains strong. Its directors authorized as much as $1 billion for stakes in Anthropic and OpenAI. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix rose in South Korea.

In Japan, SoftBank posted a quarterly shortfall of 1.1 trillion yen, equivalent to $7 billion. Its shares fell, closing slightly lower.

The gains followed a decline on Wall Street on November 10: the S&P 500 lost 0.4%, the Dow fell 0.3% and the Nasdaq dropped 0.7%. October inflation in the United States came in above economists’ expectations, pushing the 10-year Treasury yield up to 4.99% from 4.88%. Higher borrowing costs could slow economic activity and weigh on stocks. A Federal Reserve official has suggested the central bank could make a larger-than-usual rate increase in December.

Oil prices rose in early Asian trading after falling the previous session. China’s Singles’ Day shopping event also began, with its sales figures expected to provide a gauge of consumer demand.