Asian stock markets experienced a downturn on Thursday, with South Korea’s Kospi index taking a notable hit, falling 6.6%. The decline was primarily driven by a surprise interest rate hike from the Bank of Korea and significant losses in the technology sector. Among the biggest losers were SK Hynix, which plummeted 11.2%, and Samsung Electronics, which saw its shares drop by 8.2%.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 also suffered, decreasing by 2.9% as chip-related companies like Kioxia, Tokyo Electron, Advantest, and SoftBank Group faced steep declines. In Taiwan, the Taiex index dipped by 0.3% as investors awaited the earnings report from chipmaker TSMC. Similarly, China’s Shanghai Composite fell by 0.9%, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 ended the day slightly lower.
Breaking the regional trend, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose by 1.7%. The increase was largely driven by gains in Alibaba, following the approval of Apple Intelligence’s AI service in China, which utilizes Alibaba’s Qwen model.
Despite the ongoing geopolitical tensions between the United States and Iran, oil prices fell slightly but remained relatively high. Brent crude decreased by 0.4% to $84.55 per barrel, while US crude saw a 0.2% drop, settling at $79.34 per barrel. Concerns over potential disruptions to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz continue to exert upward pressure on oil prices.
Meanwhile, in the United States, stock markets closed higher the previous night. The positive performance was bolstered by data indicating easing inflation and robust corporate earnings, offering a contrast to the declines seen across most Asian markets.