Asian Stocks Surge on June 12, U.S. Three Major Indices Rally Overnight Amid Easing Geopolitical Tensions

On June 12, Asian stock markets opened sharply higher following overnight rallies across U.S. equities. South Korea's KOSPI (benchmark equity index) surged 6.4% to 8,263.85 points at open, triggering a circuit breaker after expanding gains to 7%, with Samsung Electronics rising over 9% and SK Hynix climbing over 8%. Japan's Nikkei 225 opened up 1.49% at 65,176.23 points, later accelerating to gains exceeding 4% and touching above 66,800.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 1.86% to 50,848.75 points, the S&P 500 gained 1.75% to 7,394.30 points, and the Nasdaq jumped 2.54% to 25,809.66 points. Semiconductor stocks led gains, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index surging 7.9%—its largest gain since April 2025—as SanDisk, Micron Technology, and Applied Materials each rose over 11%. According to Capital.com analyst Kyle Rodda, U.S. President Trump's cancellation of planned military strikes against Iran on June 11 signaled "minimal willingness" to escalate conflict, driving oil prices lower and boosting risk assets.