MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan scaled a record high of 761.53 points, as stellar results from Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC breathed new life into the AI trade

Asian stocks gained on Friday as the artificial intelligence boom regained momentum.

Oil prices declined alongside safe-havens gold and silver.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan scaled a record high of 761.53 points, as stellar results from Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC breathed new life into the AI trade.

Technology-heavy indexes in Taiwan and South Korea also notched all-time highs.

In China, stocks edged lower and were set to snap a four-week winning streak, as regulators tightened margin financing rules. The CSI300 blue-chip index dropped 0.34%.

Nikkei dropped 0.14%, weighed down in part by a recovery in the yen, which has pulled back from an 18-month low.

The U.S. and Taiwan clinched a trade deal on Thursday that cuts tariffs on many of the semiconductor powerhouse’s exports, directs new investments towards the U.S. technology industry and risks infuriating China.

Overnight, gains in technology and financial stocks sent U.S. stock markets higher, with Nasdaq futures up 0.4% in the Asian session. S&P 500 futures similarly tacked on 0.3%.

We know there’s lingering doubts about the spend around capex and AI more broadly, and I guess with the TSMC report yesterday being pretty solid and sounding optimistic, it certainly provided a much-needed shot in the arm for those AI names which have been struggling on U.S. stock market in recent months, said Tony Sycamore, a market analyst at IG.

I wouldn’t say it galvanised or basically shot them higher, but it certainly provided some much-needed reassurance there, that everything remains on track, he said.

EUROSTOXX 50 futures declined 0.3% while FTSE futures dropped 0.06%, after European shares scaled a record high on Thursday.