Asian stock markets faced a mostly downward trend on Thursday, with South Korea’s Kospi experiencing a significant 6.6% drop. The decline was primarily driven by a surprise interest rate hike from the Bank of Korea and substantial losses in the technology sector. Notably, SK Hynix saw its shares tumble by 11.2%, while Samsung Electronics experienced an 8.2% decline.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index also felt the impact, falling 2.9% due to setbacks in chip-related companies. Among those affected were Kioxia, Tokyo Electron, Advantest, and SoftBank Group, all contributing to the downward movement. Similarly, Taiwan’s Taiex slipped 0.3% as investors awaited the earnings report from major chipmaker TSMC, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index decreased by 0.9%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 ended the day slightly lower as well.
In contrast, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index defied the regional trend, posting a rise of 1.7%. This increase was largely fueled by gains in Alibaba, following the approval of Apple Intelligence’s AI service in China, which utilizes Alibaba’s Qwen model. This positive development helped buoy the Hong Kong market amidst otherwise widespread declines in the region.
Oil prices experienced a modest decline, with Brent crude falling by 0.4% to $84.55 per barrel and US crude slipping 0.2% to $79.34 per barrel. Despite this easing, prices remained relatively high due to ongoing geopolitical tensions, particularly concerning potential disruptions to shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, US stock markets closed higher the previous night. This uptick was supported by the release of easing inflation data and robust corporate earnings, providing a positive contrast to the challenges faced by Asian markets.