Asian equity markets experienced significant declines on Tuesday, driven by a sharp selloff in the technology sector that overshadowed the previous night's tech-led rally on Wall Street [1]. South Korea's KOSPI index led the downturn, plummeting 7.76% to trade near 7,420 as investors aggressively locked in profits following a strong, AI-driven rally in recent sessions [1]. Market heavyweight Samsung Electronics fell over 5%, despite reporting robust profit growth attributed to strong demand for AI data center memory chips [1]. SK Hynix, another major chipmaker, dropped nearly 4% as it began the marketing process for its planned US listing [1].
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 declined 1.95% to approximately 68,380, with the selloff concentrated in major tech and electronics component manufacturers. Kioxia Holdings plunged 8.3%, and Lasertec lost 6.4% [1]. However, financial sector stocks provided some resilience, as Mitsubishi UFJ and Mizuho Financial posted gains of 3.5% and 3.2%, respectively [1]. New domestic economic data from Japan showed a 3.2% increase in nominal wages and a 0.4% decrease in household spending for May [1].
Markets in Greater China also traded lower, with Hong Kong's Hang Seng index slipping 0.60% to around 23,470 and mainland China's SSE Composite index falling 1.29% to near 3,990 [1]. The widespread declines across the region highlight the volatility and profit-taking pressure in the technology sector, despite positive earnings reports from some leading companies [1].
CONCLUSION
Asian equity markets saw sharp declines, particularly in technology stocks, as profit-taking erased gains from previous AI-driven rallies. The KOSPI's 7.76% drop and notable losses in major tech names signal heightened volatility and caution among investors, despite some positive earnings and economic data.