Asia stocks set to gain after US tech rally; yen retains gains
Yen surged abruptly amid speculation Japanese authorities intervened to support the currency.
Published Fri, Jul 31, 2026 · 07:57 AM
STOCKS in Asia looked set to rise on Friday (Jul 31) after a rebound in megacap US technology shares revived confidence in the artificial intelligence trade.
Equity-index futures for Australia, Japan and South Korea pointed to gains after the S&P 500 rose 1.7 per cent and the Nasdaq 100 climbed 3.4 per cent.
Microsoft surged 16 per cent, adding roughly US$450 billion to its value, the most by any stock in a single day.
Contracts for US equities rose in Asia as Amazon.com jumped in late trading after reporting cloud-computing revenue that accelerated for the fifth straight quarter. Apple slipped after hours on weak China sales.
Elsewhere, the US dollar extended its decline a day after the US Federal Reserve held interest rates unchanged and as the yen surged abruptly amid speculation Japanese authorities intervened to support the currency.
The focus now shifts to whether blockbuster earnings from AI leaders can revive momentum after the recent pullback. Investors will be watching for further signs that heavy spending translate into faster growth and stronger profits.
“Despite near-term volatility, the outlook for US equities remains constructive, supported by strong corporate earnings, ongoing AI adoption, a resilient economy, and favourable financial conditions,” said Sameer Samana at Wells Fargo Investment Institute.
In Asia, the yen soared by the most in more than two years against the US dollar, with Japan’s Nikkei newspaper reporting that officials stepped in once again to try and prop up the nation’s sagging currency.
The latest moves in the yen come just ahead of the Bank of Japan’s next policy decision on Friday, in which policymakers are expected to hold rates after June’s hike.
“Previous interventions have been followed by BOJ hikes, most recently in mid-2024,” said Rory Green, an economist at TS Lombard.
Meantime, oil edged higher in early Friday trading, with West Texas Intermediate crude around US$84 a barrel.
Traders have hesitated to make big bets as they weighed US and Iran exchanging air strikes on Thursday against a recent pick-up in shipping through Hormuz.
The market is also monitoring two attacks on ships attempting to load at the Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal on Russia’s Black Sea coast, the main export route for Kazakh barrels. In the week ended Jul 26, similar attacks led to days without shipments and helped push oil prices above US$100 a barrel.
Thursday’s rally in US chipmakers trimmed their July plunge to 21 per cent – which is still set to be the biggest monthly slide since 2008.
The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, known as the Sox, climbed 8.2 per cent, ending a five-day run of declines. The Roundhill Memory ETF advanced 17 per cent. Top semiconductor companies like Micron Technology and Nvidia climbed, with Sandisk jumping 26 per cent.
Meanwhile, solid US consumer spending and business investment signalled underlying strength even as growth moderated in the second quarter. Long-term bond yields kept rising a day after the US Fed held rates steady on Jul 29 despite high inflation.
The US 30-year bond’s yield – which rose 11 basis points to the highest level since 2007 after Wednesday’s Fed announcement – rose as much as four basis points before paring its increase to end the day near 5.21 per cent. Shorter-maturity US Treasury yields extended the declines sparked by the decision to delay rate hikes.
“If inflation does not slow down, then there is risk of a further rise in the long-dated bond yields,” said Jens Peter Sorensen, chief analyst at Danske Bank. “The market is left guessing on how many hikes are needed and the hikes may come later than the market expects.” BLOOMBERG
