Asian markets rally, led by a 6% Kospi jump, after US Treasury expands debt buybacks

Following the US Treasury's decision to at least double its planned purchases of longer-term government securities, bond yields in the United States and Japan fell, calming investors' concerns about rising rates. This policy shift helped lift Asian markets, with South Korea's Kospi rallying 6.1% to 6,858.91 after a previous decline tied to AI-related sell-offs. Samsung Electronics gained 9.7% and SK Hynix surged 14.1% after the chipmaker unveiled a sizable share-buyback plan.

Japan's one outlet 225 rose 1.3%, while SoftBank Group added 3.8% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng climbed 1.1%; the Shanghai Composite and Australia's ASX 200 also posted modest gains. US equity futures ticked up, and yields on the 10-year and 30-year Treasuries slipped to around 4.64% and 5.18% respectively. Oil prices edged higher and the yen weakened slightly against the dollar.