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U.S. Fed cuts rates

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South Korean & Taiwan stocks hit fresh record highs

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GoTo gains 7% on upbeat full-year outlook

By Rajasik Mukherjee

Oct 30 (Reuters) - South Korean and Taiwanese stocks

surged to record highs on Thursday, buoyed by renewed investor

enthusiasm for artificial intelligence and a fresh trade pact

between Washington and Seoul, while markets hoped leaders of the

U.S. and China would be able to thrash out a trade deal truce.

After a nearly two-hour meeting with Chinese President Xi

Jinping, U.S. President Donald Trump announced he would lower

tariffs on China and Beijing would put no more roadblocks on the

supply of rare earths. Further details were still being awaited

from both sides.

South Korea's KOSPI index rose as much as 1.6%

earlier, notching a record high of 4,146.72 points, as investors

cheered AI-darling's Nvidia's ( NVDA ) landmark move past a $5 trillion

valuation and strong quarterly earnings from Samsung Electronics ( SSNLF )

.

Nvidia's ( NVDA ) milestone has amplified investor appetite for

AI-linked stocks globally, with South Korean chipmakers seen as

key beneficiaries of the sector's explosive growth.

Earlier on Wednesday, Trump and South Korean President Lee

Jae Myung finalised details of their fraught trade deal at a

summit in South Korea, bolstering equities.

Taiwan's benchmark equity gauge surged 0.8% to reset

its record high to 28,527.68 points, before paring some gains to

trade flat as of 0433 GMT.

In Southeast Asia, shares in Manila fell 0.6%, while

Singapore stocks edged 0.2% lower.

Indonesian stocks gained for the second day

straight, rising as much as 0.8%, driven by gains in GoTo Gojek

. Indonesia's biggest tech firm surged 7% to hit its

highest level in nearly four weeks after it raised its full-year

earnings forecast.

Analysts at Jefferies said GoTo's third-quarter adjusted

earnings beat market expectations as they maintained their buy

rating and price target of 100 rupiah. The stock was last

trading at 60 rupiah.

Globally, the Federal Reserve delivered a widely expected

rate cut Wednesday, but Chair Jerome Powell's remarks that a

policy divide within the central bank and lack of federal

government data dampened hopes for further easing this year.

The recalibration of Fed rate cuts propped up the U.S.

dollar index, which hovered around two-week highs against

a basket of major currencies, keeping Asian currencies in check.

"The U.S. dollar strengthened following a somewhat hawkish

rate cut by the Federal Reserve, weighing on regional

currencies," MUFG analysts wrote in a note.

"High-yielding currencies such as the Indonesian rupiah

(IDR), Indian rupee (INR), and Philippine peso (PHP) could stay

under pressure."

The Philippine peso and Malaysian ringgit both

edged 0.3% lower, while rest of the currencies in the region

traded largely flat.

Japan's yen slid 0.2% against the U.S. dollar to

152.65 a piece, as the Bank of Japan stood pat on rates but

repeated its pledge to continue increasing borrowing costs if

the economy moved in line with its projections.

HIGHLIGHTS:

** Yield on Indonesia's 10-year bonds ticks

higher to 6.024%

** Thailand investment applications up 94% y/y in 9 months this

year

** Hong Kong central bank cuts interest rate, tracking Fed move

** Trump asks Pentagon to immediately resume testing US nuclear

weapons

Asia stock indexes and currencies at 0433 GMT

COUNTRY FX RIC FX DAILY FX YTD % INDEX STOCKS STOCKS

% DAILY YTD %

%

Japan +0.01 +2.94 0.32 29.02

China India -0.25 -3.17 -0.50 9.64

Indonesia -0.16 -3.29 0.26 15.64

Malaysia -0.24 +6.51 0.18 -1.70

Philippin -0.28 -1.18 -0.58 -9.19

es

S.Korea Singapore +0.08 +5.36 -0.26 16.93

Taiwan -0.16 +6.86 -0.10 22.71

Thailand -0.09 +5.83 -0.73 -6.73