Analysis: Why Asia Stocks Have Rallied This Year

Asian stock markets have rallied this year, driven by a weaker U.S. dollar, the artificial intelligence (AI) boom and the region’s resilience to the trade war, with an anticipated U.S. interest rate cut expected to extend the momentum.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index is up 18% this year through Monday, with the index hitting a record high. The index gauges the performance of large- and mid-cap stocks from five developed economies — Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand and Singapore — and eight emerging markets — China, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand and the Philippines.