GDP in Japan, GDP in Singapore, Trade in South Korea

The total value invested in bitcoin surpassed $1 trillion on Wednesday, reaching its highest level in more than two years after bitcoin exchange-traded funds debuted in the United States last month.

The price of Ether, the world's second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, surpassed $2,700 to reach its highest level since May 2022, as investors expect the US Securities and Exchange Commission to give the green light to ether ETFs in May.

“We have a global convergence of favorable regulatory activity, and what it does is free up a tremendous amount of institutional capital,” Paul Brody, global blockchain leader at Ernst & Young, told CNBC's “Squawk Box Asia” on Thursday.

“There is $200 trillion of institutional capital that previously did not have access to these assets, and although these inflows will not happen overnight, we will see a steady allocation of resources to them,” he added.

-Dylan Potts

Indonesian stocks rose after Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto declared victory in the country's presidential election after unofficial vote counts showed him significantly ahead of his rivals.

The Jakarta Stock Exchange Composite Index rose as much as 2% to its highest level since January 8. The index is currently trading 1.55% higher, led by gains in the financials and basic materials sectors. The Indonesian rupiah rose by 0.13%.

However, some remain cautious about the rise.

“It is too early, if not hypothetical, to show the unbridled and sustained euphoria implied by continued rises in Indonesian assets and the rupiah,” Mizuho wrote in a daily note, noting the importance of the Indonesian Finance Ministry establishing financial credibility.

-Li Ying Shan

Shares of Rakuten Group jumped more than 15% on Thursday after the Japanese technology group reported a smaller loss for 2023 than the previous year.

Rakuten earnings report released It showed an operating loss of 212.86 billion yen for 2023, compared to 371.61 billion yen in 2022, late Wednesday.

The company also recorded a lower attributable loss of 339.47 billion yen, compared to the 2022 loss of 377.21 billion yen.

Profits and revenues of the FinTech and Internet Services business segments increased in 2023, while the losses of the Mobile segment decreased by approximately 30% in 2023.

— Lim Hui Jee, Shreyashi Sanyal

Japanese semiconductor company Renesas Electronics announced Thursday that it will buy Sydney-listed software company Altium in an all-cash deal worth A$9.1 billion ($5.89 billion).

Renesas shares fell 1.2% in early trading in Tokyo, while Altium shares jumped 28% in Sydney.

Renesas said It will pay A$68.50 per share, a 33.6% premium to Altium's closing price on Wednesday of A$51.26.

Renesas, which will finance the deal through bank loans and cash on hand, said the acquisition will allow the chipmaker to simplify the electronics design process for customers as Altium's main business is making tools for designing chip circuit boards.

The Japanese company indicated that the deal was unanimously approved by the board of directors of the two companies and is now awaiting the approval of Altium shareholders, the Australian court and regulators.

– Shreyashi Sanyal

Australia eEmployment numbers increased by only 500 In January, which widely missed Reuters' expectations of an increase of 30,000.

The country's unemployment rate rose to 4.1% from 3.9% in December, and was also higher than Reuters' forecast of 4%.

Separately, Australia's labor participation rate held steady at 66.8%.

– Lim Hui Ji

The Japanese economy unexpectedly contracted during the last quarter of 2023, according to government data.

Provisional GDP contracted 0.4% in the fourth quarter from a year ago, after a revised 3.3% decline in the July-September period.

The reading was also well below the Reuters poll's forecast for growth of 1.4%.

Japan also contracted by 0.1% on a quarterly basis, after shrinking by 0.8% in the third quarter compared to the second quarter.

For more, please read the full story.

– Shreyashi Sanyal, Clement Tan

The performance of major Asian markets was mixed over the past year.

Investors are avoiding Chinese stocks, while flooding the markets of India and Japan.

Those interested in stock picking rather than passive investing can look to the bank's list of “alpha” stocks that could outperform the market.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

-Weezin Tan

Singapore's economy grew by 2.2% year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2023, official data showed on Thursday, which is lower than prior estimates of 2.8% growth and Reuters' expectations for a 2.5% expansion.

Overall, Singapore's economy grew by 1.1% in 2023, slower than the 3.8% expansion in 2022. Growth in 2023 was largely driven by the information, communications, transportation and storage sectors.

-Li Ying Shan

European semiconductor equipment stocks are likely to outperform as spending on AI chips rises over the next decade, according to Bank of America.

The continent's chip stocks produce the high-tech machinery needed to manufacture the latest generation of chips.

“We raise ours [price targets] “On our EU Semicaps coverage, which we expect to continue to benefit from investment in AI infrastructure,” Bank of America analysts said in a note to clients.

The Wall Street bank said its top picks are likely to rise further, thanks to a “scarcity of value in Europe for AI-related stocks.”

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more about their stock picks here.

-Ganesh Rao

Federal Reserve Vice Chairman for Supervision Michael Barr on Wednesday endorsed the central bank's cautious approach to cutting interest rates this year.

In prepared remarks to the National Association for Business Economics, Barr expressed confidence that inflation is heading back toward the Fed's 2% target, but noted that “we need to see continued good data before we can begin the process of lowering the funds rate.” Federalism.”

This week's CPI data, which showed inflation rising higher than expected in January, served as a “reminder that the road back to 2% inflation may be bumpy.”

In addition to comments on monetary policy, Barr assessed the banking system's conditions as “sound and resilient” although he said there were “a few pockets of risk”, most notably commercial real estate.

—Jeff Cox

Crude oil futures fell on Wednesday, giving up gains made earlier in the session as inventories rose in the United States while demand fell.

The West Texas Intermediate March contract lost $1.23, or 1.58%, to settle at $76.64 a barrel. The settlement price for the Brent contract for April was set at $81.60 per barrel, down $1.17, or 1.41%.

The move came after US commercial crude oil inventories rose by 12 million barrels last week, according to the Energy Information Administration. Demand for oil, as measured by final products supplied to the market, decreased by 973 thousand barrels per day during the same period.

Oil prices rose 1% earlier in the trading session after Israel launched air strikes on Lebanon in response to rocket fire at northern Israel that killed one person and wounded at least seven others.

-Spencer Kimball

Apple was the largest lagging company in the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

The iPhone maker fell 1.3% in early afternoon trading. This capped gains for the 30-stock index, which has been little changed recently.