Japanese and Korean stock markets surge, Samsung Electronics up over 8%, SoftBank soars 20%

The global stock market has continued its upward trend for the second consecutive day, with the resurgence of enthusiasm for artificial intelligence trading and the temporary easing of geopolitical tensions resonating together. The Asian technology sector is leading the global market, recording its largest one-day gain in six weeks, with South Korea and Japan's markets at the forefront.

The South Korean KOSPI closed up 8.4%, marking its largest one-day gain since April 1st. Samsung Electronics rose by 8.5%, SK Hynix surged over 11%, while LG Electronics and Hyundai Mobis both significantly jumped by more than 10%.

Samsung's stock price was further boosted after successfully averting a potential strike. The Nikkei 225 closed up 3.1%, with SoftBank Group soaring 20% in a single day. The core driving force behind SoftBank's surge came from two pieces of news: OpenAI plans to go public in the fall this year, with SoftBank as a significant shareholder, set to benefit directly;与此同时, Nvidia has announced strong earnings, which has lifted the spirits of the global AI industry chain, leading to a general rise in the Japanese semiconductor and technology sectors.

The MSCI Global Index increased by 0.5%, with Asian stocks overall surging by 2.7%. Vantage Global Prime analyst Hebe Chen stated that Nvidia's impressive results "effectively reset regional market sentiment," and the easing geopolitical tensions further enhanced risk appetite, helping to reactivate market demand that had been previously suppressed by rising bond yields and macroeconomic uncertainty.

Bloomberg strategist David Savage judged, "The Asian AI narrative has made a strong return with momentum, and the collective surge of regional chip giants is pushing up North Asian technology-heavy indices," with oil prices and global yield's synchronized retreat providing additional assistance.

On the geopolitical front, Trump claimed that the negotiations between the U.S. and Iran have entered the "final stage," and the market's expectations for the reopening of the energy channel in the Strait of Hormuz increased, leading to a significant one-day decline in international oil prices by over 5%, with Brent crude oil later rebounding slightly to around $106 per barrel.

Inflation concerns have somewhat subsided, the bond market rebounded slightly from recent selling, U.S. stock index futures erased earlier losses and finished slightly positive, and European stock markets are expected to open higher as well.

However, Nvidia's own market reaction has been quite intriguing. Despite its latest quarterly performance exceeding expectations, its stock price still fell by 1.3% in after-hours trading, creating a stark contrast with the collective celebration of Asian AI concept stocks that day.

This divergence indicates that Jensen Huang's optimistic statements have ignited the imagination of surrounding supply chains, but investors' expectation management for Nvidia itself has entered a more complex phase – where surpassing expectations on performance no longer results in a synchronized rise in stock prices.

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon also warned on the same day that interest rates may "rise significantly," casting a doubt on the market's optimistic sentiment.

The two core variables to watch in the coming period are: first, whether the U.S.-Iran negotiations can make substantive progress, as the direction of oil prices will directly affect inflation expectations and the stability of the bond market; and second, the IPO progress of OpenAI and SpaceX. If these two deals are successfully completed, they will be an important litmus test for whether the technology sector's sentiment can continue.