Sawt Falasteen - Stocks shrug off tensions to rise on renewed tech interest

Oil prices were little changed.

In New York, the main indexes opened mostly higher. In mid-afternoon European trading, Paris and Frankfurt edged higher, while London was dragged lower by a sharp fall in AstraZeneca shares.

Indications that a planned US listing by South Korean chip giant SK hynix is seven times oversubscribed have put pep back into tech stocks, which had fallen in recent sessions because of concerns about massive investment in AI.

The investor interest in SK hynix "demonstrates continued investor appetite for AI-related semiconductor companies, which encouraged investors to return to tech stocks despite ongoing geopolitical uncertainty in the Middle East", said Angus Campbell at Trade Nation.

British pharmaceutical giant Astrazeneca slumped 10 percent after its new heart drug failed to meet targets in a trial, dealing a rare setback to the market heavyweight.

Earlier, most Asian equity markets advanced, though sentiment remained subdued amid concerns over stretched technology valuations and uncertainty over when AI investments will see returns.

International oil benchmark Brent North Sea was little changed, holding just below $80 a barrel, having briefly topped that threshold Wednesday for the first time in two weeks, reviving fears of a spike in inflation and a hit to the economy.

After the United States and Iran traded attacks on Wednesday, Trump said the ceasefire was "over" but left the door open to more talks and added any strikes would end quickly.

The United States and Iran traded more strikes on Thursday, with Tehran targeting US assets in Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar.

"Although the events of recent days are another sign that the path to a long-term peace will have many twists and turns, the market seems well placed to absorb the current tensions," said Kathleen Brooks, research director at trading group XTB.

Seoul -- the poster child of Asia's AI-led tech boom this year -- closed 0.6 percent higher, although the market has tanked more than 20 percent below the record high it reached in June.

Tokyo added more than one percent, while Shanghai, Singapore, Wellington, Mumbai, Bangkok and Jakarta also finished higher. Hong Kong fell.

SK hynix is expected to announce the pricing for its American Depository Receipts and observers suggest it could raise as much as $28 billion from the sale.

The company's shares in Seoul jumped almost seven percent Thursday, though they remain more than 30 percent below the record high reached last month after being swept up in the recent tech rout.

- Key figures around 1340 GMT -

Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.1 percent at $77.98 a barrel

West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.5 percent at $73.16 a barrel

London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.5 percent at 10,436.29 points

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.5 percent at 8,298.40

Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.4 percent at 24,999.97

Seoul - Kospi: UP 0.6 percent at 7,291.91 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.4 percent at 67,743.85 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.7 percent at 24,030.18 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: UP 1.7 percent at 4,036.59 (close)

New York - Dow: UP LESS THAN 0.1 percent at 52,364.18 (close)

New York - S&P 500: UP 0.4 percent at 7,509.48

New York: Nasdaq Composite: UP 0.6 percent at 26,020.52

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 162.32 yen from 162.54 yen on Wednesday

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1437 from $1.1422

Pound/dollar: FLAT at $1.3396 from $1.3396

Euro/pound: UP at 85.36 pence from 85.26 pence

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S.Barghouti--SF-PST