New Delhi, Nov 6 (SocialNews.XYZ) Asian markets tumbled on Friday as fears of tighter regulation of artificial intelligence (AI) and a potential slowdown in AI-related spending triggered a sharp selloff in technology stocks following heavy losses from Wall Street.
South Korea's KOSPI index fell more than 8 per cent which triggered a trading halt before recovering slightly after the market reopened.
Similarly, another major index, Japan's Nikkei, dropped around 6 per cent.
While Taiwan's benchmark index also decreased by more than 8 per cent.
In terms of particular stocks, major semiconductor and AI-linked companies led the losses as Samsung Electronics declined nearly 10 per cent and SK Hynix slid almost 12 per cent.
Meanwhile, SoftBank Group -- one of the world's largest investors in AI businesses -- fell 11 per cent amid concerns over future returns from the sector.
According to experts, the decline reflected growing doubts over whether the massive investments being made in AI infrastructure, chips and data centres would continue at the current pace if regulators adopt a stricter stance toward the industry.
They pointed to investor positioning and forced selling as factors amplifying the downturn.
The selling pressure in the Asian shares came after a steep decline in US markets overnight on Thursday where technology shares came under intense pressure after investors grew concerned that a stronger Democratic presence in Congress could lead to increased scrutiny of the rapidly expanding AI sector.
The Nasdaq Composite plunged 5.5 per cent, while the S&P 500 fell over 4 per cent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 3.4 per cent.
Moreover, the selloff erased roughly $3 trillion in market value from S&P 500 companies and pushed Wall Street's volatility index sharply higher.
The weakness spread quickly to Asia where technology-heavy markets recorded some of the region's steepest losses in recent years.
On the commodities front, international benchmark Brent crude rose about 2 per cent to $100.31 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude also gained more than a per cent to $91.91.
Source: IANS
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