Asian shares and U.S. futures advanced on Monday as AI stocks recovered some ground lost in last week’s sell-offs, according to Associated Press (AP).

Taiwan’s Taiex led the gains with a 5.6% jump. The rise followed a rebound in chipmaker TSMC, which also surged 5.6%.

Regional tech stocks also benefited from Friday’s gains in the U.S. There, AI stocks got some relief after the sell-off earlier in the week. Investors had worried that Democratic victories in the midterm elections could slow construction of AI data centers, particularly in Texas. Voters across political parties say they are wary about AI and do not like increases to power bills caused by data centers.

Meanwhile, the rest of the U.S. stock market was mixed. Investors are still weighing what the sweeping Democratic victories will mean for markets and the broader economy.

Trading started strong in Tokyo on Monday. The Nikkei 225 index gained 3.4% to 59,411.34. Chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron rose 6.5%, while Advantest, which makes testing equipment, was up 5.1%.

However, SoftBank Group’s shares fell 2.9%. The company is maneuvering to salvage a $5.4 billion robotics deal with Switzerland’s ABB, which Chinese regulators have rejected.

In South Korea, the Kospi advanced 1.5% to 5,137.22. Samsung Electronics Corp. gained 2.7%, and chipmaker SK Hynix jumped 3.9%. These are relatively modest gains for companies whose share prices have yo-yoed as investors dumped and then snapped up AI-related shares over the past few weeks.

Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng edged up 0.2% to 24,525.58. The Shanghai Composite index added 0.4% to 3,663.91. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.1% lower to 9,011.50.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 rose 0.3% on Friday. It trimmed its loss for the week to 2.7%, which was its worst since U.S. President Donald Trump shook markets in April 2025 with his “Liberation Day” tariffs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.5%, while the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.1%.

This relative steadiness halted a worldwide tumble for stocks. Indexes had dropped 6% in Tokyo and in Seoul following Wall Street’s plunge on Thursday.

Friday’s biggest lift for the S&P 500 came from Nvidia. The chip company has become the face of the boom and possible bust of the AI frenzy. Its stock climbed 2.8%, coming off drops of 9.3% and 3.2%.

Nvidia is a central player in the race to develop artificial intelligence. Its chips power many of the data centers and computing systems used to train and run AI models. Its advanced processors have also been a focus of U.S. export restrictions aimed at limiting China’s access to cutting-edge semiconductor technology. As a result, investors will keep a close watch on AI stocks in the days ahead.

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