{"id":1931,"date":"2026-08-20T05:23:02","date_gmt":"2026-08-20T05:23:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uscnews.org\/?p=1931"},"modified":"2026-08-20T05:23:02","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T05:23:02","slug":"asian-shares-gain-with-south-koreas-kospi-up-6-after-the-us-treasury-expands-its-debt-buybacks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uscnews.org\/?p=1931","title":{"rendered":"Asian shares gain, with South Korea\u2019s Kospi up 6%, after the US Treasury expands its debt buybacks"},"content":{"rendered":"

A person walks in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan’s Nikkei index at a securities firm Thursday, Aug. 20, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo\/Eugene Hoshiko)<\/small><\/p>\n

2026-08-20T05:13:34Z<\/p>\n

HONG KONG (AP) \u2014 Asian shares advanced Thursday, tracking Wall Street gains<\/a><\/span>, and South Korea\u2019s benchmark Kospi jumped more than 6%.<\/p>\n

U.S. futures edged higher after the U.S. Treasury Department said it would at least double the size<\/a><\/span> of planned purchases of longer-term government debt.<\/p>\n

That could ease pressure on share prices emanating from the bond market since the purchases would push bond prices higher, helping to bring down yields.<\/p>\n

The Kospi surged 6.1% to 6,858.91 after sinking 5.8% on Wednesday on renewed selling of shares related to artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n

Samsung Electronics jumped 9.7%, while memory chipmaker SK Hynix surged 14.1% after the company announced a significant share buyback plan.<\/p>\n

Japan\u2019s Nikkei 225 gained 1.3% to 66,178.26, reversing declines earlier in the week. Japan reported it logged a trade deficit<\/a><\/span> for a third straight month in July, as both imports and exports hit record highs.<\/p>\n

Shares of OpenAI investor SoftBank Group, a Japanese multinational investment holding firm, added 3.8%. <\/p>\n

Hong Kong\u2019s Hang Seng gained 1.1% to 25,786.32, while the Shanghai Composite index rose 0.3% to 3,905.23.<\/p>\n

Australia\u2019s S&P\/ASX 200 was up 0.3% to 9,066.40.<\/p>\n

Taiwan\u2019s Taiex was nearly unchanged and India\u2019s Sensex climbed 0.7%.<\/p>\n

Yields on U.S. government bonds fell after the U.S. Treasury Department\u2019s announcement on its expanded plans in government debt buybacks. Bond yields fall when bond prices rise in an inverse relation.<\/p>\n

The move appeared to mollify investors worried over rising yields. On Wednesday, the benchmark S&P 500 climbed 0.2% for its first gain in four days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.2% and the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite also rose 0.2%.<\/p>\n

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