Asian shares fall, tracking Wall Street’s tumble
As Nvidia and other AI superstar stocks kept dropping on worries their prices have shot too high
Asian shares fall, tracking Wall Street’s tumble
Asian shares retreated on Friday, tracking Wall Street’s tumble to one of its worst days since April as Nvidia and other AI superstar stocks kept dropping on worries their prices have shot too high.
US futures were nearly unchanged and oil prices advanced. South Korea’s Kospi led the regional decline, falling 3.2 per cent to 4,038.61 amid the global tech sell-off. Samsung Electronics shed 4.1 per cent and SK Hynix was down 6.4 per cent. LG Energy Solutions gave up 3.7 per cent.
Taiwan’s Taiex lost 1.7 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell nearly 1.7 per cent to 50,438.99, reversing the previous day’s gains. SoftBank Group led the slide, plunging 5.7 per cent amid losses in its technology and AI related investments.
In Chinese markets, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index shed 1.3 per cent to 26,732.99, while the Shanghai Composite index slipped nearly 0.2 per cent to 4,022.89. Data on Friday showed China’s factory output grew at a 14-month low of 4.9 per cent year-on-year in October, down from 6.5 per cent in September and below expectations of 5.5 per cent.
Investment in fixed asset such as factory equipment also fell 1.7 per cent year-on-year in the January to October period. Persisting weakness in property investments were a key factor dragging on business investment.
In Australia, the S&P /ASX 200 dropped 1.4 per cent to 8,628.30 as hopes the Reserve Bank of Australia will cut rates faded after a strong jobs report. India’s BSE Sensex slid 0.4 per cent.
On Thursday, the US stock market tumbled to one of its worst days since its springtime sell-off. Doubts over whether interest rate cuts that Wall Street has been banking on will actually happen also have dimmed investor sentiment.
The S&P 500 sank 1.7 per cent to 6,737.49, pulling further from its all-time high set late last month.
