Winners: South Korea’s KOSPI doubled in 1H (+100%), driven by AI flows and
historic rallies in Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix. Taiwan’s weighted index
rose ~60%, led by TSMC (+>55% over six months). Japan’s Nikkei climbed ~40%,
powered by tech gains and a sharp yen depreciation that boosted exporter appeal
to foreign buyers. Spot crude remained a top performer despite a pullback: WTI
+~20% YTD, Brent +~20% YTD. US major indices posted solid gains: Nasdaq ~+13%,
S&P 500 +9.5% 1H. The dollar index recovered from a low of 95.5 to close H1
above 101, up ~3% YTD. AUD/USD gained ~3.7% on Reserve Bank of Australia hikes
and higher energy prices. Copper benefited from “compute metal” demand: LME 3M
copper +7%, hitting a record ~$14,527/ton. Losers: Precious metals
underperformed—spot gold -~7% YTD and more than $1,500 below its intra-year
peak; spot silver -~18%; platinum -~24%; palladium -~25%. Yen weakness: USD/JPY
+3.8% 1H, yen at a 40-year low and USD/JPY roughly +10% since last October’s
change in Japanese leadership. Indonesia: Jakarta Composite Index down ~34% 1H
amid severe political turmoil; rupiah was the weakest Asian currency YTD.
