Asia-Pacific markets advanced on Thursday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 leading the region and Chinese markets continuing their upward momentum. The Nikkei 225 surged by 2.12%, while the broader Topix rose by 1.65%. The market gains in Japan were buoyed by the release of the Bank of Japan’s July meeting minutes, which provided further clarity on the central bank’s policy stance.
In China, the CSI 300 extended its winning streak to seven consecutive days, hitting its highest level in nearly two months. The rally follows Beijing’s rollout of economic stimulus measures earlier this week. The index opened 0.15% higher on Thursday, signaling continued investor optimism.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index also saw growth, advancing 0.91% to reach its highest point since May. South Korea’s Kospi jumped by 1.9%, with chipmaker SK Hynix surging more than 8% after announcing the mass production of the world’s first 12-layer HBM3E chip, designed for use in artificial intelligence memory applications. The smaller Kosdaq index gained 1.31%.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 joined the regional rally, rising 0.53% as markets remained positive.
In contrast, U.S. markets experienced a slight dip. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 both retreated from their recent record highs. The S&P 500 lost 0.19%, while the Dow fell by 0.7% after reaching a new high during early trading. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite edged up marginally by 0.04%, remaining in positive territory despite the broader decline.