Asia stocks jump as Anthropic IPO filing revives AI trade

Asian shares rallied on Tuesday as technology stocks surged after artificial intelligence startup Anthropic filed for an initial public offering, lifting sentiment ahead of major corporate earnings and a series of central bank meetings later this week.

The rally followed a recovery on Wall Street on Monday, when the S&P 500 gained 0.7%, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.8%, supported by renewed demand for AI-related shares.

U.S. stock index futures also edged higher in Asian trading Tuesday by 02:13 GMT.

KOSPI, Nikkei jump as tech shares track Anthropic IPO buzz

South Korea's tech-heavy KOSPI rose more than 4% in early trading, with heavyweights Samsung Electronics (KS:005930) and SK Hynix (KS:000660) climbing 5% and 7%, respectively.

South Korea's stronger-than-expected third-quarter GDP data provided further support for the region's technology rally. The economy grew 1.0% quarter-on-quarter, accelerating from 0.6% in the previous quarter and exceeding economists' expectations of 0.7%.

Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 2%, while the broader TOPIX index edged up 0.6%. Tokyo-listed SoftBank (TYO:9984) shares jumped more than 6%, while Advantest (TYO:6857) surged nearly 10%.

Anthropic, the maker of the Claude chatbot, on Monday disclosed rapid revenue growth alongside steep losses in its IPO filing, highlighting both the commercial potential of generative AI and the substantial costs of developing advanced models.

The planned listing has refocused attention on the ability of AI companies to attract public-market investors despite concerns about profitability and heavy infrastructure spending.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index jumped 3% overnight, its biggest daily gain in more than a month, as investors returned to chipmakers and companies supplying AI infrastructure.

China and Hong Kong shares, however, lagged the broader regional rally. China's Shanghai Composite and the blue-chip Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 traded largely flat.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index edged down 0.3%, but major chipmakers SMIC (HK:0981) and Hua Hong Grace Semiconductor (HK:1347) rose modestly.

Major tech earnings, central bank meetings loom

Elsewhere, Singapore's Straits Times Index ticked 0.1% lower, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.2%.

Futures tied to India's Nifty 50 gained 0.1%.

Investors prepare for results from major technology companies, including Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Amazon Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN), later this week.

Their earnings and capital expenditure plans are expected to provide crucial evidence of whether spending on data centres, semiconductors and computing infrastructure is generating sufficient revenue and profits to justify lofty valuations.

The AI rally has faced pressure in October as investors questioned the sustainability of the investment boom, particularly as borrowing costs remain elevated.

Investors are also bracing for monetary policy decisions from the U.S. Federal Reserve, European Central Bank and Bank of Japan.

All three are widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged, shifting attention to policymakers' comments for clues about the future path of borrowing costs.

Oil prices and geopolitical risks remain another source of uncertainty. Crude extended losses on Tuesday from near six-month highs as diplomatic efforts raised hopes of easing tensions in the Middle East, although attacks on Saudi energy infrastructure kept concerns about supply disruptions alive.

Persistently high energy prices could fuel inflation and complicate the outlook for central banks, potentially limiting the scope for monetary easing.