Asia stocks saw significant gains, with Japan's Nikkei 225 and South Korea's KOSPI reaching record highs following the announcement of a peace deal between the US and Iran aimed at ending their recent conflict. Despite a negative impact from Wall Street, S&P 500 Futures rose due to hopes generated by the agreement. The Nikkei surged by nearly 2%, while KOSPI rose by about 1%, driven by strong demand in the chipmaking and AI sectors. In contrast, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell to an 11-month low due to declines in local tech stocks and investment concerns. Overall, while Japan and South Korea posted gains, their markets were buoyed by tech advancements, particularly in AI and semiconductors, amid broader regional volatility.

Asia stocks rise with Nikkei, KOSPI at record highs as US, Iran sign peace deal

Author Ambar Warrick

Stock Markets

Published06/17/2026, 11:22 PM

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Asia stocks rise with Nikkei, KOSPI at record highs as US, Iran sign peace deal

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Investing.com-- Most Asian stocks rose on Thursday, with Japanese South Korean shares hitting a record high after reports showed the U.S. and Iran had signed a framework deal to end their nearly four-month war.

Hong Kong shares lagged, sinking to an 11-month low as local internet stocks fell, while concerns over Beijing’s crackdown on cross-border investments also weighed.

Regional markets mostly brushed off a negative lead-in from Wall Street, which slid overnight after the Federal Reserve floated the possibility of an interest rate hike this year.

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But S&P 500 Futures jumped nearly 0.9% in Asian trade after reports showed U.S. President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart had remotely signed a memorandum of understanding to end their war.

The preliminary agreement stands to end hostilities in the Middle East, and will also reopen the Strait of Hormuz. But Trump warned earlier on Wednesday that the U.S. could resume attacks on Iran if it doesn’t comply with the deal.

The two sides will engage in 60 days of talks for a more comprehensive agreement, with Iran’s nuclear program being a key point of focus.

Nikkei, KOSPI hit record highs on chips, AI strength

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index was the best performer in Asia on Thursday, surging nearly 2% to a record high of 71,477.0 points. The TOPIX index also jumped 2% to a record peak.

South Korea’s KOSPI rose nearly 1% to a record high of 8,976.55 points.

Gains were fueled chiefly by chipmaking and artificial intelligence-linked stocks, as markets bet that sustained growth in AI-driven demand will continue to yield strong growth for the tech sector.

SK Hynix Inc (KS:000660) was a standout performer in South Korea, rising 5% to a record high after it said it had shipped samples of an advanced memory chip to major customers.

In Japan, chip component makers Murata Mfg Co (TYO:6981) and Aibiden were the top performers on the Nikkei, while tech conglomerate SoftBank Group Corp. (TYO:9984) rose 3% after logging deep losses in recent sessions.

Other Asian markets were less upbeat. Australia’s ASX 200 fell 0.5%, while Singapore’s Straits Times index rose 0.2%.

Futures for India’s Nifty 50 index rose 0.6%, as falling oil prices spurred increased optimism over an economic recovery in India.

China’s Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 added 0.1%, while the Shanghai Composite fell 0.4%.

Hong Kong lags, Hang Seng hits 11-mth low

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index vastly lagged its regional peers, sliding 1.8% to its weakest level since July 2025.

Local internet and tech heavyweights fell across the board, with Alibaba Group (HK:9988), Tencent (HK:0700), Baidu Inc (HK:9888), and Xiaomi Corp (HK:1810) down between 1% and 3%.

Hong Kong’s top internet stocks were pressured by growing investor preference for more AI and hardware-exposed names in Asia, with chipmakers in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan seeing much more buying in recent weeks.

Additionally, China’s crackdown on mainland investments in Hong Kong also pressured local stocks, given that it points to less capital flows from wealthy mainland investors.

Stocks with wealth management and brokerage exposure were the worst hit by this trend, with AIA and Prudential nursing deep losses so far in June.

But Hong Kong-listed AI stocks fared better. Zhipu, which trades as Knowledge Atlas Tech Joint Stock (HK:2513), jumped 15%, while rival MiniMax Group Inc (HK:0100) added 9.6%.

Asia stocks rise with Nikkei, KOSPI at record highs as US, Iran sign peace deal

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MSFT	378.91	-3.79%	41.99M
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Asia stocks rise with Nikkei, KOSPI at record highs as US, Iran sign peace deal By Investing.com

Asia stocks rise with Nikkei, KOSPI at record highs as US, Iran sign peace deal

Nikkei, KOSPI hit record highs on chips, AI strength

Hong Kong lags, Hang Seng hits 11-mth low

Industry Spotlight

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