South Korea’s Kospi hits sixth straight record high on U.S. trade deal optimism

South Korea’s Kospi index jumped more than 2% Tuesday to hit a sixth consecutive record high, building on a rally spurred by optimism around an impending trade deal with the U.S.

South Korean stocks have been on a roll since U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC in an exclusive interview Wednesday stateside that Washington was “about to finish up” trade negotiations with the Asian country.

“The devil’s in the details, but we are ironing out the details,” he added.

The Kospi index has risen about 61% year to date.

Auto stocks helped boost the index, with shares of Hyundai Motor climbing 6.45%, while Kia Corp added 4.28%. Heavyweight Samsung Electronics was also up 1.73%.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 1.5% to a fresh record, after closing at an all-time high Monday. The Topix also added 0.73% to hit a record high.

Broader Asia-Pacific markets also opened higher, tracking Wall Street gains, led by a rally in Apple shares.

Investors await Japan’s parliamentary vote, which is likely to see Sanae Takaichi become the country’s next prime minister, after the right-wing opposition Japan Innovation Party said Monday it was ready to back her premiership.

Australia’s ASX/S&P 200 rose 0.50%. Shares of the country’s rare earth companies rose after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and U.S. President Donald Trump signed a critical minerals agreement Tuesday, aimed at countering China’s dominance.

Australia’s Lynas Rare Earths added 3.8%, Iluka Resources jumped nearly 6%, Pilbara Minerals rose 4.7%. VHM skyrocketed over 30%, while Northern Minerals soared nearly 15%.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 1.17% in early trading, while the Hang Seng Tech index was up 1.84%. Mainland’s CSI 300 was 0.3% higher.

Hong Kong-listed shares of CATL gained 4.73% after the battery manufacturer posted strong third-quarter earnings late Monday. The Tesla battery supplier’s net profit for the July-September period rose 41% to 18.5 billion yuan ($2.6 billion).

Indian markets are closed for a holiday.

U.S. equity futures were little changed in early Asian hours, ahead of a busy earnings week from big-name companies and inflation data.

Overnight, the three key benchmarks in the U.S. rose on a rally in Apple shares after Loop Capital upgraded it to buy from hold.

 The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 515.97 points, or 1.12%, higher at 46,706.58. The S&P 500 also climbed 1.07% to settle at 6,735.13, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.37% to settle at 22,990.54.

— CNBC’s Sean Conlon and Pia Singh contributed to this report.