[MARKET ANALYSIS] APAC stocks mostly firmer on AI after-hours strength; KOSPI leads

APAC Stocks: Mostly Positive

• Asia-Pac stocks are mostly firmer after a mixed Wall Street session, in which the Dow and Russell 2000 gained while the Nasdaq 100 lagged on AI-debt concerns. Sentiment is underpinned by after-hours strength in AI names, after Super Micro Computer guided Q1 revenue well above expectations and SpaceX CEO Musk guided ARR of USD 500bln-1tln by end-2027. Middle East headlines remain in focus, with Iran's IRGC threatening to target internet cables in the Strait of Hormuz if its infrastructure is attacked.

ASX 200: -0.1%

• Flat amid a busy morning of updates, with NEXTDC cutting FY27 guidance on M3 Melbourne power delays, while RBA's Hauser said the inflation outlook has deteriorated.

Nikkei 225: +1.4%

• Firmer on the AI-led strength in US after-hours trade, shrugging off softer-than-expected exports (16.7% vs exp. 20.1%) and a wider trade deficit.

KOSPI: +3.3%

• Leads the region, rebounding after Tuesday's near-4% slide, with the tech rebound in full play.

Hang Seng & Shanghai Comp: Hang Seng +0.7% / Shanghai Comp -0.1%

• Hong Kong outperforms the mainland amid tech exposure, while CATL is in focus after its Q3 miss. The PBoC also injected CNY 80bln via overnight reverse repos while setting 7-day operations at zero.

US Equity Futures: Positive

• NQ (+1.0%) outperforms after gaining on SMCI's guidance and SpaceX's call, while ES (+0.3%) is firmer and YM and RTY are flat; Tesla, Meta, IBM and Texas Instruments report later.

European Equity Futures: +0.3%

• Indicate a positive open, with Euro Stoxx 50 futures +0.3% after the cash market closed -0.3% on Tuesday.

Sessions led by after-hours strength in a handful of AI names fit a recurring pattern in concentrated tech tape: single-stock guidance, here Super Micro's revenue outlook and Musk's ARR framing, sets the regional tone, and the durability of that move typically hinges on the follow-through from the heavyweight reporters due later, in this case Tesla, Meta, IBM and Texas Instruments. The KOSPI leading the region after a near-4% slide the prior session is the familiar oversold-semiconductor rebound dynamic; such snapbacks have historically been sharper in Korea than peers given the index's memory-chip weighting, but they have also faded quickly when the underlying de-rating driver re-emerges. The Nasdaq 100 lagging the Dow and Russell on AI-debt concerns is the tell worth carrying forward, since a rotation away from the AI complex beneath a firmer headline tape has in past episodes preceded broader dispersion rather than fresh highs. On the policy side, Hauser flagging a deteriorating inflation outlook keeps the RBA's hawkish tilt in play at the front of the Australian curve, while the PBoC's choice of overnight reverse repo injection with 7-day operations at zero signals liquidity smoothing rather than easing, a distinction mainland equities have tended to read as neutral. Iran's threat against Strait of Hormuz infrastructure sits as the standing tail risk for crude freight and insurance premia, though such rhetoric has historically mattered only when accompanied by action. The immediate calendar is the US earnings slate and whether European cash confirms the firmer futures indication.