Asian shares rise after rally on Wall Street as data show US inflation slowing

Asian shares mostly rose Wednesday, following a Wall Street rebound after U.S. inflation cooled more than economists expected. In Seoul, South Korea’s Kospi jumped 6.2% to 7,284.41, led by a rebound in semiconductors: SK Hynix gained 9.4% and Samsung Electronics rose 6.1%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 1.3% to 68,613.89, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.4% to 8,841.10. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 1.5% and Shanghai Composite slipped 0.2%. Markets also weighed renewed concerns about U.S.-Iran tensions, lifting oil prices; U.S. crude rose 30 cents to $79.64 and Brent gained 62 cents to $85.35. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 gained 0.4% to 7,543.59 as bond yields eased. Following the inflation data, traders saw under a 17% chance of a Fed rate hike at its next meeting, supporting equities including Micron (+4.9%) and Nvidia (+4.1%).