In Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng Index opened up seven points, or 0.03 percent, at 25,150.
The tech index was up three points, or 0.07 percent, at 4,755 while the China enterprises index was flat at 8,381.
On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite Index opened up 0.42 percent at 3,812.
The Shenzhen Component Index opened 0.34 percent higher at 13,656 while the ChiNext Index was up 0.76 percent at 3,469.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei opened around 403 points, or 0.62 percent, higher at 64,544 before putting on more gains to be 1,020 points, or 1.59 percent, up at 65,162 at one stage before noon.
In Seoul, the Kospi was 145 points, or 2.24 percent, higher at 6,662 at one stage before midday after opening up 37 points, or 0.58 percent, at 6,553.
The gains came as Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis said they would impose a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia, a move that could further disrupt energy supplies, amid attacks between the US and Iran, even as efforts were being made to revive a fragile ceasefire.
Brent crude futures eased 0.38 percent to US$88.88 per barrel in early trading on Tuesday as investors latched on to hopes of a resolution.
Brent hit its highest since mid-June at US$91.42 a barrel in the previous session.
A senior Iranian official said Tehran had received a proposal from mediators for a 10-day ceasefire, intended to pave the way for a lasting agreement to end the war.
“I think we’ve got a really strange situation that investors are still trying to look at things with a glass half full view, as we’ve seen this all before a few months ago and want the same outcome,” said Nick Twidale, chief market strategist at ATFX Global in Sydney.
Twidale noted that concern has to be growing that things could get out of hand and the conflict really escalates across the region.
“Feel we might see one catalyst that pops things and then we are off to the races,” he said.
Global stocks, led by chipmakers, have been hit by severe volatility in recent weeks as investors fret about high valuations, pace of profit growth and whether the investment into AI infrastructure will yield tangible results.
Investor focus this week will be on earnings from Alphabet and Intel along with other firms to gauge the impact of the war and whether the AI trade has more room to run given sky-high profit expectations for the second quarter.
Strong earnings from Asian chip bellwethers Samsung Electronics and TSMC in recent weeks were not enough to satisfy investor expectations, underscoring the challenge facing the industry.
“While demand for AI hardware remains red hot, with companies barely able to keep up supply, investor expectations for earnings have become increasingly lofty, rendering the sector vulnerable even to a marginal adjustment in projections,” said Fred Neumann, chief Asia economist at HSBC in Hong Kong.
“The economic backdrop is becoming more challenging as well, with rising energy prices and higher interest rates complicating the outlook and showing that even the AI hardware sector is not entirely immune to such broader developments.” (Reuters/Xinhua)
