Asian stocks surge as Kospi hits record intraday gain on AI stocks rally; Crude continues to rise

Asian stocks rose sharply on Friday, July 31, led by a record 15% intraday jump in South Korea’s Kospi. Investors piled back into artificial intelligence stocks after a recent sell-off. Chip giants SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics both climbed more than 25%, while Brent crude prices also rose above $89.