CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Asian stocks turned in a mixed performance on Wednesday as investors digested softer-than-expected inflation data from the U.S. and awaited more clarity on ongoing trade talks.
Regional tech stocks surged after Nvidia announced the sale of over 18000 AI chips to Saudi Arabian firm Humain during the Saudi-U.S. Investment Forum.
The dollar weakened in Asian trade while metals were mostly higher.
Gold prices fell nearly 1 percent as easing U.S.-China trade tensions weakened the safe-haven demand for the previous metal. Oil prices dipped after industry data signaled rising stockpiles.
China's Shanghai Composite index jumped 0.86 percent to 3,403.95 as investors assessed the latest trade developments.
China lifted a ban on Boeing deliveries after the weekend tariff truce. The United States said it will reduce the 'de minimis' tariff on low-value Chinese goods, according to an executive order.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index soared 2.30 percent to 23,640.65, with tech giants like Tencent and Alibaba leading the surge. E-commerce giant JD.com rallied 3.4 percent after it beat market estimates for quarterly revenue.
Seoul stocks rose for a third day running on eased trade woes. The Kospi average climbed 1.23 percent to 2,640.57, with semiconductor, bio and entertainment shares pacing the gainers. Chip giant SK Hynix surged 3.8 percent.
Australian markets ended marginally higher after a choppy session as traders scaled back expectations of RBA's rate cuts.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 edged up by 0.13 percent to 8,279.60 while the broader All Ordinaries index closed up 0.11 percent at 8,520.20.
Macquarie Group shares fell 1.6 percent as the corporate regulator sued the investment bank alleging it misreported up to 1.5 billion short sales over a decade and a half.
Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index finished marginally lower at 12,779.26.
U.S. stocks ended mostly higher overnight as trade optimism prevailed and data showed consumer inflation rose less than expected in April.
The CPI edged up by 0.2 percent in April, bringing the annual increase down to 2.3 percent from 2.4 percent.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.6 percent and the S&P 500 added 0.7 percent to reach their best closing levels in well over two months as Saudi Arabia announced AI development deals with four leading U.S. technology firms, including chip companies NVIDIA and AMD. The narrower Dow shed 0.6 percent.
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