Tech-driven rally lifts Asia stocks as Iran peace hopes boost sentiment

Asian stock markets extended their rally as technology shares rose on Wall Street and optimism for renewed US-Iran diplomacy boosted risk appetite. Japan’s Nikkei and South Korea’s KOSPI traded near record highs, while China’s Shanghai and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng chipped higher. Memory-chip makers led gains on artificial intelligence demand expectations, and oil prices eased on talk of possible talks, supporting equities as softer US PPI data suggested cooling inflation ahead of key bank earnings.