Asian stocks began the week on a positive note, following Wall Street’s gains on Monday, as tech stocks drove investor’s sentiments and currency markets grappled with volitality, with Japan’s yen sliding to record lows.In Japan, Nikkei added 973 points or 1.97% to reach 50,480 at 8:40 AM IST. South Korea’s Kospi also inched 1.88% to trade at 4,096. Hang Seng Index edged higher, adding 0.11% to 25,966. Shanghai and Shenzhen also traded in green, adding 0.63% and 1.27%, respectively. Trading volumes remained low in a holiday-shortened week across much of the world, however, markets edged higher ahead of delayed US economic data, in anticipation of strong numbers for the third quarter. Median forecasts pointed to annualised growth of 3.2%, helped by a sharp fall in imports after a surge earlier in the year ahead of tariff introductions.Japan’s Nikkei traded in green as sharply weaker yen was seen boosting export earnings for Japanese companies. The currency continued to slide even after the Bank of Japan raised interest rates to a 30-year high of 0.75%, a move that intensified selling pressure in government bonds. Minutes from the Bank of Japan’s policy meeting are due on Wednesday, while the central bank’s governor is scheduled to address a Japanese business lobby on Christmas, Reuters reported. The yen touched a new record low against the euro at 184.90 and weakened to 198.08 against the Swiss franc. The dollar rose to 157.67 yen, though traders remained cautious about pushing beyond the November peak of 157.90 amid fears that such a move could trigger intervention from Tokyo.South Korea’s market surged 1.8% on optimism surrounding AI-related earnings. In commodities, silver continued its strong run, hitting a fresh record high of $67.48 per ounce and lifting year-to-date gains to nearly 134%. Gold rose 0.6% to $4,362 an ounce, Reuters reported. Oil prices also moved higher after the United States intercepted a Venezuelan oil tanker over the weekend and pursued another, marking the third such operation in less than two weeks. Brent crude rose 0.7% to $60.88 a barrel, while U.S. crude gained 0.7% to $56.89 per barrel.