On Thursday, Asian stock markets experienced a general downturn, with South Korea’s Kospi leading the declines with a sharp 6.6% drop. This downward trend was primarily influenced by an unexpected interest rate hike from the Bank of Korea and significant losses in the technology sector. In particular, shares of SK Hynix plummeted by 11.2%, and Samsung Electronics saw a decline of 8.2%.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index also faced a setback, losing 2.9%. This was largely due to a slump in chip-related stocks, affecting companies such as Kioxia, Tokyo Electron, Advantest, and SoftBank Group. Meanwhile, Taiwan’s Taiex experienced a modest decline of 0.3% as investors awaited the earnings report from chipmaker TSMC. In China, the Shanghai Composite index fell by 0.9%, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 ended the day slightly lower.
Contrasting with the regional trend, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index managed to rise by 1.7%. This upward movement was supported by positive gains in Alibaba, following the approval of Apple Intelligence’s AI service in China, which utilizes Alibaba’s Qwen model.
In the energy markets, oil prices saw a slight decrease, although they remained at elevated levels due to ongoing geopolitical tensions. Brent crude slipped by 0.4% to reach $84.55 per barrel, while US crude edged down by 0.2% to settle at $79.34 per barrel. Concerns lingered over potential disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which continued to provide underlying support for oil prices.
Meanwhile, US stock markets concluded the previous session on a positive note, buoyed by easing inflation data and robust corporate earnings. This contrasted with the general decline observed across most Asian markets.