Sawt Falasteen - Asian markets track Wall St record after Fed cut

The gains came despite renewed concerns about tech valuations after disappointing earnings from sector giants Oracle and Broadcom.

Markets were on course to end a mixed week on a positive note, with eyes now on the release of delayed US jobs data next week, which could provide an insight into the central bank's plans for next year.

Figures released Thursday showed initial jobless claims rose more than expected in the week ended December 6, marking their biggest increase for five and a half years and reinforcing the view of a softening labour market.

Traders welcomed Fed boss Jerome Powell's post-meeting comments Wednesday -- which were seen as less hawkish than feared -- but the policy board's statement suggested it could hold off a fourth straight cut in January.

And analysts said the fact that three decision-makers unusually dissented complicated the policy outlook.

Still, investors in New York continued to look at the positives, pencilling in more cuts next year and pushing the S&P 500 and Dow to fresh records.

Asia broadly followed suit, with Tokyo, Hong Kong, Sydney, Singapore and Seoul up around one percent, while Wellington, Taipei and Manila also rose. Shanghai and Jakarta slipped.

"So, (the Fed being) not as hawkish as it could have been and despite only one cut next year pencilled in, a new Fed chair and cooling jobs market means markets think there is more to come," said Neil Wilson at Saxo Markets.

The gains came despite worries about an AI-led rally in tech firms that has seen many firms chalk up eye-watering gains, with chip giant Nvidia becoming the first to break a $5 trillion valuation in October.

With warnings that the hundreds of billions of dollars pumped into AI may have been overdone -- and investors might have to wait some time before seeing any returns -- analysts say valuations could be overstretched and a bubble forming.

Those worries were compounded Thursday as earnings from chip titan Broadcom failed to meet investors’ lofty expectations and its outlook for AI sales disappointed. Its shares fell more than four percent in after-hours trade.

The news came a day after software firm Oracle reported quarterly revenue had fallen short of forecasts and revealed a surge in spending on data centers to boost AI capacity. Shares in Oracle ended down 10.8 percent in New York.

- Key figures at around 0230 GMT -

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.9 percent at 50,610.04 (break)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 1.1 percent at 25,799.01

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.5 percent at 3,854.15

Dollar/yen: UP at 155.73 yen from 155.58 yen on Thursday

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1734 from $1.1741

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3391 from $1.3394

Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.62 pence from 87.65 pence

West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.7 percent at $58.02 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.7 percent at $61.69 per barrel

New York - Dow: UP 1.3 percent at 48,704.01 (close)

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.5 percent at 9,703.16 (close)

W.AbuLaban--SF-PST