Asia-Pacific markets experienced a challenging Wednesday, largely influenced by a significant pullback in U.S. technology stocks that had a negative domino effect on investor sentiment across the region. The Nikkei 225 in Japan saw a decline of 1.2%, primarily driven by notable losses in the tech sector. Key contributors to this downturn included Lasertec, a chip equipment manufacturing company, which plummeted by 7%, and the gaming giant Konami Group, which fell by 5.8%. Another major player, Tokyo Electron, also faced a decline, dropping 3.2%. The Topix index followed suit with a decrease of 0.39%.
Meanwhile, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 saw a surprising uptick, rising by 0.45%, contrasting with its regional counterparts. South Korea’s Kospi managed a modest gain of 0.4%, while the smaller-cap Kosdaq surged by 1.01%. In Japan, despite maintaining its full-year sales forecast for the upcoming Switch 2 console, Nintendo’s shares dropped over 9%. Investors expressed concern over potential challenges, particularly the impact of soaring memory prices—a critical component in its gaming consoles.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index edged down by 0.1%, and the CSI 300 also faced a setback, declining by 0.28%. On the commodities front, gold prices continued to rise, climbing more than 1% to reach $5,002 per ounce, while spot silver saw a modest increase of 0.69%, reaching $85.70 per ounce.
In overnight trading on Wall Street, the S&P 500 experienced a pullback, falling by 0.84% to close at 6,917.81 amid widespread selling in technology stocks as investors shifted their focus to equities that are more closely tied to economic recovery. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also dipped, shedding 166.67 points, or 0.34%, to finish at 49,240.99. Earlier in the session, the index had reached a record high of 49,653.13, reflecting a brief surge. The Nasdaq Composite took a more substantial hit, declining by 1.43% to settle at 23,255.19.
Within the tech sector, many heavyweights were negatively affected. Both Microsoft and Meta Platforms saw their shares fall by over 2%, while Apple declined marginally. Nvidia, a key player in artificial intelligence, reported nearly a 3% drop, compounding its losses for the year. Additionally, software firms faced a tough day, with ServiceNow and Salesforce both experiencing declines close to 7%.
