Asian stock markets saw a general downturn on Thursday, with South Korea’s Kospi experiencing a significant 6.6% decline. This drop came in response to the Bank of Korea’s unexpected interest rate increase and substantial losses in the technology sector. Notably, SK Hynix’s shares plummeted by 11.2%, and Samsung Electronics witnessed an 8.2% decrease.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index fell by 2.9%, primarily due to setbacks in chip-related stocks. Companies such as Kioxia, Tokyo Electron, Advantest, and SoftBank Group contributed to the decline. Taiwan’s Taiex index recorded a slight dip of 0.3% as investors awaited the earnings report from chipmaker TSMC. Meanwhile, China’s Shanghai Composite index decreased by 0.9%, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 also concluded the day with minor losses.
Contrary to the regional trend, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose by 1.7%. This increase was largely driven by Alibaba’s gains after its AI service, Apple Intelligence, received approval in China, utilizing Alibaba’s Qwen model. The positive performance of Alibaba provided a boost to the Hong Kong market amidst broader declines in Asia.
Despite ongoing geopolitical tensions between the United States and Iran, oil prices experienced a slight decrease. Brent crude dipped by 0.4% to $84.55 per barrel, while US crude saw a marginal decline of 0.2% to $79.34 per barrel. However, concerns regarding potential disruptions in shipping through the Strait of Hormuz continued to keep oil prices relatively high.
In contrast to the Asian markets’ performance, US stock markets ended the previous night on a positive note. This uptick was supported by favorable inflation data and strong corporate earnings, providing a boost to investor sentiment.