Trump agrees to ceasefire, Korean and Japanese stock markets soar in response! Storage sector surges, driving Korean stock index up over 5%.

After the US and Iran reached a two-week ceasefire agreement, the stock markets in Japan and South Korea saw significant gains at opening. According to the agreement, the US and Israel will pause military actions in exchange for Iran reopening the Strait of Hormuz. As of the time of writing, the Topix index in Japan rose by 2.81% to 3756.76 points; the Nikkei 225 index rose by 4.51% to 55837.91 points. The KOSPI composite stock index in South Korea increased by 5.33% to 5787.76 points, with SK Hynix, one of the super-heavyweight stocks in the South Korean market, seeing a nearly 10% increase in stock price. Samsung Electronics, the largest chip manufacturer in the world and a major heavyweight stock in the South Korean market, also surged by over 6%, with both chip giants driving a significant rebound in the South Korean market. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. rose by 2.85%, making the largest contribution to the rise in the Topix index. Among the index components, 1514 rose, 39 fell, and 99 remained unchanged. After the ceasefire news, the yen strengthened against the US dollar. Masahiro Ichikawa, Chief Market Strategist at Mitsui Sumitomo DS Asset Management, stated that Trump's condition for reopening the Strait of Hormuz was "unexpected." Ichikawa said, "Although the ceasefire only lasts for two weeks, it will clearly boost investor sentiment." Kazunori Tatebe, a strategist at Daiwa Asset Management, stated that even though the ceasefire period is short, it has raised expectations for substantial progress during this time. He noted that market attention is likely to return to cyclical sectors, artificial intelligence, and commodities that were previously sold off due to the Iran conflict.