SINGAPORE — Asian stocks inched higher on Wednesday and the dollar wobbled near six-week lows as traders braced for higher US duties on steel and aluminum, the latest chapter in the trade war saga that has rattled the markets for much of the year.
South Korea’s stocks and its currency surged as liberal presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung’s election victory raised hopes of swift economic stimulus, market reforms and easing policy uncertainty.
The benchmark KOSPI jumped more than 2 percent to its highest since August 2024. That left the MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan 0.6 percent higher.
Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.8 percent, while Taiwan stocks jumped 1.6 percent after artificial intelligence behemoth Nvidia boosted US stocks overnight.
Data on Wednesday showed US job openings increased in April, but layoffs picked up, indicating a slowing labor market as tariffs impact the economic outlook.
Investor attention has been on a possible call between US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping sometime this week as tensions between the world’s top two economies simmer.
Trump on Friday accused China of violating a Geneva agreement to roll back tariffs and trade restrictions. Beijing said it would safeguard its interests and that the accusation was groundless.
Chinese stocks were little changed in early trading with the blue chip index up 0.09 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 0.27 percent.
