(May 14): Asia’s benchmark stock index rose on Wednesday, led by the tech sector, as investors awaited earnings from some of the largest Chinese technology firms this week.  

An index of regional tech shares climbed 1.6% after chipmakers led Tuesday’s rally in US equities. The gains followed news Nvidia Corp and Advanced Micro Devices Inc will supply semiconductors to Saudi Arabian firm Humain for a data-centre project. Other Asian markets were mixed, while the dollar and Treasuries were little changed.

China’s most valuable company, Tencent Holdings Ltd will announce earnings on Wednesday, and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd will report the following day. The results may reveal how the sector’s two largest companies are coping with the uncertain geopolitical outlook, and give a guide as to whether Chinese tech stocks may resume their rally.

“A good run of tech earnings from China would certainly offer a catalyst to spur further gains,” said Frederic Neumann, the chief Asia economist of HSBC Holdings plc in Hong Kong. “As macro risks recede, investors will again pay more attention to earnings and prospects for renewed strength in tech.” 

Tencent climbed 1.5% in Hong Kong, while Alibaba rose 1%. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co jumped more than 2% in Taipei, the biggest contributor to gains in the MSCI Asia Pacific Index.

US benchmark stock indices wiped out their 2025 losses on Tuesday on signs trade tensions are easing and after US inflation was softer than forecast. The S&P 500 closed 0.7% higher, while the Nasdaq 100 climbed 1.6%. The Bloomberg Magnificent Seven index of megacaps added 2.2%.

The Trump administration plans to overhaul regulations on the export of semiconductors used in artificial intelligence, tossing out a Biden-era approach that had drawn strenuous objections from America’s allies. The US is also weighing a deal that would allow the United Arab Emirates to import more than a million advanced Nvidia chips, people familiar with the matter said.

The easing of trade tensions and a surprisingly positive US earnings season have spurred optimism after a period of doubt about Corporate America’s ability to meet high profit expectations. The stock market is “gonna go a lot higher”, US President Donald Trump said, citing an “explosion of investment and jobs” as he said Saudi Arabia would commit to investing US$1 trillion (RM4.31 trillion) in the US.

US inflation rose by less in April than economists forecast amid tame prices for clothing and new cars, suggesting little urgency so far by companies to pass along the cost of higher tariffs to consumers.

The temporary agreement reached over the weekend to de-escalate the trade war with China has largely scaled back projections of how much damage tariffs will inflict on the economy. JPMorgan Chase & Co boosted its forecast for US growth, dropping its earlier call that the world’s largest economy would sink into a recession in 2025.

While derivative contracts continue to price in two quarter-point rate cuts by the Federal Reserve (Fed) this year, several major Wall Street banks this week forecast a rate cut in December, later than they previously anticipated.

Oil steadied after the biggest four-day rally since October, spurred by trade-war optimism and Trump’s increasingly hostile rhetoric on Iranian supply. Gold held a small gain after US inflation data came in weaker than expected, spurring traders to shore up bets on Fed interest-rate cuts.

Some of the main moves in markets: