ASIA MARKET CLOSE | TAIEX Rises 4.94% to End Seven-Day Losing Streak, Nikkei Gains 2.33% as KOSPI Slips

According to RTHK, HKET and UDN Money, Japan's Nikkei 225 closed at 58,775.50, up 1,340.73 points or 2.33%, after touching an intraday high of 59,440. The broader TOPIX ended at 3,818.16, up 2.97%. Sony closed 3.74% higher and Tokyo Electron added 2.77%, while SoftBank Group fell 4.20%. Seoul's KOSPI closed at 5,018.85, down 40.84 points or 0.81%. Daishin Securities analyst Lee Kyoung-min said investors were looking for direction as bargain buying in semiconductors continued, adding that the scandal involving Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang caused fresh unease. Samsung Electronics rose 0.64% to 189,900 won and SK hynix edged up 0.35% to 1,136,000 won, while LG Energy Solution fell 5.78%, Hyundai Motor lost 2.86% and Hanwha Aerospace declined 3.18%. Hong Kong stocks opened higher but closed lower, with the Hang Seng Index ending at 24,448.95, down 32.91 points or 0.13%. The Hang Seng Tech Index fell 0.92% to 4,040.73. Main-board turnover was HK$173.71 billion. Meituan dropped 6.53%, the worst performer among blue chips, while SMIC rose 1.01% and Hua Hong Semiconductor gained 2.35%. Taiwan's TAIEX closed at 41,661.70, up 1,960.06 points or 4.94%, ending a seven-session losing streak, as the National Stabilization Fund announced it would enter the market. TSMC rose 4.68% to NT$2,235, Delta Electronics added 9.95%, MediaTek climbed 9.88% and Hon Hai gained 6.46%. In mainland China, A-shares were mixed. The Shanghai Composite closed at 3,660.79, up 0.32%, while the Shenzhen Component fell 0.27% to 11,145.49 and the ChiNext Index slipped 0.27% to 2,458.56.