Asian Stocks Plunge as Wall Street Sell-Off Sparks Global Market Rout
Asian stock markets dropped sharply on Wednesday, following heavy overnight losses on Wall Street. Investors reacted to mounting concerns over stretched tech valuations, triggering broad sell-offs across the region.
In the U.S., the S&P 500 fell 1.2%, while the NASDAQ Composite slid nearly 2% on Tuesday. Futures tied to major U.S. indices continued to edge lower during Asian trading hours as of 02:51 GMT, signaling ongoing market pressure.
Nikkei and KOSPI Lead Asia’s Decline
The KOSPI index in South Korea plunged 4.5%, retreating from record highs reached earlier in the week. Tech heavyweights Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix sank between 6% and 7%, reflecting investor anxiety over semiconductor valuations.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 tumbled 4.4%, also falling from record territory. Losses were led by major tech and investment firms, with SoftBank Group collapsing over 14% and Advantest Corp sliding nearly 10%.
The sharp declines came after several U.S. banking executives, including leaders from Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, warned that markets could experience a 10–15% correction. Their comments raised doubts about the sustainability of the recent rally and reignited fears of a tech-driven market bubble.
Asia-Pacific Markets Turn Red
Across the broader region, the S&P/ASX 200 in Australia fell 0.9%, following the Reserve Bank of Australia’s decision to keep interest rates unchanged at 3.60%.
Singapore’s Straits Times Index dropped 0.5%, while futures tied to India’s Nifty 50 edged down 0.4%.
Fed Policy Uncertainty and Trade Tensions Add Pressure
Investor sentiment was also weighed down by uncertainty surrounding Federal Reserve policy. Mixed signals from Fed officials in recent days have clouded expectations for potential rate cuts, increasing caution in global markets.
At the same time, geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China continue to linger. The fragile U.S.–China trade truce remains unresolved, particularly over technology export restrictions. Earlier this week, the U.S. reaffirmed that Nvidia’s Blackwell AI chips will remain for domestic use only, intensifying concerns over supply chain limits.
In China, the Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 index fell 0.6%, while the Shanghai Composite slipped 0.4%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index declined 1.2%, led by a 2.5% drop in the Hang Seng TECH sub-index.
Meanwhile, a private survey showed that China’s services sector expanded slightly faster than expected in October, though growth continued to moderate amid ongoing economic headwinds.
