World Shares, Oil Prices Gain Wednesday08/05 04:52

   Shares advanced in Europe and Asia on Wednesday after the U.S. stock market 
rallied to records, helped by strong corporate earnings reports and hopes for a 
deal setting the stage for talks that might eventually lead to an end to the 
war in Iran.

   BANGKOK (AP) -- Shares advanced in Europe and Asia on Wednesday after the 
U.S. stock market rallied to records, helped by strong corporate earnings 
reports and hopes for a deal setting the stage for talks that might eventually 
lead to an end to the war in Iran.

   Oil prices resumed their ascent, with Brent crude gaining more than 1%.

   In early European trading, Germany's DAX rose 0.3% to 26,268.90, while the 
CAC 40 in Paris edged less than 0.1% higher. Britain's FTSE 100 was up 0.2% at 
10,898.40.

   The futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 
0.2%.

   Benchmarks jumped more than 3% in Tokyo and Seoul as shares in computer 
chipmakers and other AI-related companies advanced.

   Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 3.7% to 66,300.44, with chipmaker Kioxia surging 
4.2% while chip testing equipment maker Advantest soared 8.8%.

   The Kospi in Seoul shot up 3.8% to 6,598.26, led by a 5.8% gain for memory 
chipmaker SK Hynix. Tech giant Samsung Electronics advanced 2.5%.

   Taiwan's Taiex advanced 2.9% as major chipmaker TSMC gained 3.7%.

   "Clearly today the market is rallying on the back of AI stocks. You look 
across the other sectors, there's a bit of activity here and there, but really 
the focus has been back on semiconductors, technology and AI," said Neil 
Newman, head of strategy for Astris Advisory Japan.

   Elsewhere in the region, the Shanghai Composite index picked up 1.5% to 
3,878.43, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 0.4% to 25,915.82.

   In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.9% to 9,227.80.

   The Sensex slipped 0.2% after the Reserve Bank of India chose to keep its 
key repo rate unchanged at 5.25%, saying the economy was resilient despite 
shocks from the Iran war, but risks remained.

   Declines in oil prices have buoyed shares.

   Brent crude, the international standard, reversed early losses, gaining 1.4% 
to $80.45 per barrel early Wednesday. On Tuesday, it sank 5.3% as hopes rose 
for progress toward a full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices swung 
between $72 and $102 through July on uncertainty about when calm in the Middle 
East would allow oil tankers to freely exit the Persian Gulf again to deliver 
crude around the world.

   Iran and Oman were inching toward a deal to reopen the strait, though that 
appears to be contingent on the United States lifting its blockade on Iran's 
ports.

   "All in all, it's looking much brighter. We're still not completely out of 
the woods yet, but I think we're seeing some route out of this now and it's 
been reflected in the markets," Newman said.

   U.S. benchmark crude picked up 0.7% to $76.29 per barrel.

   On Tuesday, the S&P 500 shot up 1.8%, topping its prior all-time high set in 
June. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1.7% to its own record set the day 
before, while the Nasdaq composite jumped 2.6%.

   Profits are piling up for companies as easing oil prices assuage worries 
about inflation.

   Palantir Technologies helped lead the way, surging 29.5% after its CEO Alex 
Karp said its overall revenue leaped 93% in what he called an "otherworldly" 
quarter.

   Such reports have helped to allay worries over a possible bubble in stock 
prices because of the AI boom.

   Shares in Chipotle Mexican Group tumbled 9.7%, however, on fears that its 
future profits could be hurt after the chain removed jalapeos from some of its 
restaurants following a salmonella outbreak. Chipotle said that Minnesota 
health officials have no ongoing concerns with it.

   Reports on the U.S. economy showed it remains resilient even though 
inflation is worse than anyone would like. U.S. employers were advertising 
nearly 7.4 million job openings at the end of June, the Labor Department said, 
a slight slowdown from May's level but close to economists' expectations.

   In other dealings early Wednesday, the U.S. dollar slipped to 157.81 
Japanese yen from 157.74 yen. The euro rose to $1.1535 from $1.1532.