Market Declines in Asia-Pacific Following US Trends

Asia-Pacific markets experienced a downturn on Friday, influenced by Wall Street’s recent declines and ongoing worries regarding the high valuations in the artificial intelligence sector.

The shares of several prominent AI companies, particularly in the US, faced significant drops on Thursday, contributing to a broader market decline. Notably, Nvidia, Microsoft, Palantir Technologies, Broadcom, and Advanced Micro Devices all saw their stock prices fall.

In Japan, the Nikkei Stock Average decreased by 2.03%, mainly due to the poor performance of AI-related stocks. Companies like Softbank, semiconductor testing equipment maker Advantest, and chip manufacturer Renesas Electronics saw drops of over 7%, 8%, and 4%, respectively, with Tokyo Electron also falling by 2.17%.

Moreover, the TOPIX index dropped by 1.18%.

South Korea’s Kospi plunged 3.1% amid volatile trading, with the smaller Kosdaq also experiencing a decline of 3.45%. Major memory chipmakers Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix saw their stocks decline by 2.62% and 3.71%, respectively.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 fell by 0.72%. Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index decreased by 1.14%, and the mainland’s CSI300 index fell by 0.3%.

Recent official data showcased a decline in China’s exports, which fell 1.1% in US dollar terms compared to a year ago. This was notably lower than the 3% increase many had expected. Imports also showed weaker growth, rising by just 1% year-on-year in October—below the expected 3.2% and down from September’s 7.4% rise. Such figures emerge against a backdrop of ongoing domestic issues, including a struggling housing market, rising employment concerns, and reduced consumer stimulus measures.

In India, the Nifty 50 index decreased by 0.63%, while the Sensex index dropped by 0.49%. Notably, Bharti Airtel’s stock price slid after it transitioned to a subsidiary of Singapore-based Singtel, which recently sold its stake in the Indian telecommunications giant for S$1.5 billion. Following this news, Singtel’s shares climbed up to 5.11%, hitting a new intraday high, while Airtel’s declined by as much as 4.34%.

Meanwhile, U.S. futures showed a slight uptick in early trading session hours following the previous day’s downturn in tech stocks. On Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down by 398.70 points (0.84%), finishing at 46,912.30. The S&P 500 Index and the Nasdaq Composite Index also fell by 1.12% and 1.9%, respectively.