Asian stocks hit record high, dollar wobbles on peace deal hopes

Asian stocks soared to record highs on Thursday while the US dollar slipped and oil nursed steep ​losses as traders embraced the prospect of a peace deal in the Middle East, although the fate of the critical Strait of ‌Hormuz remains unresolved. Japan’s Nikkei returned from a long holiday to cross 62,000 for the first time, catching up on a blistering AI-led rally after robust earnings that has also catapulted South Korean and Taiwan stocks to records. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 1%, hitting another all-time high. The index is up 7% so far this ​week. “But we’ve ​seen this story before, and the rug could get pulled out of the market pretty quickly too. Ultimately, if we ⁠keep seeing progress in talks, Asian markets will keep rallying.”