Asian stocks fall as chip rout deepens; Nikkei drops 4.4%
What's new: MSCI's Asia-Pacific gauge sank 2.1% and Brent neared $85 a barrel as AI spending fears and Middle East tensions hit sentiment.
Asian stocks slid Friday after a deeper selloff in chipmakers spread from Wall Street into regional markets, with investors questioning whether 2026's AI-fueled rally had gone too far. MSCI's Asia-Pacific equities gauge fell 2.1%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 dropped 4.4% and the Topix lost 2.6%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 1.9%, the Shanghai Composite retreated 1.7% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.5%. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing fell more than 4% even after a solid earnings outlook, as a higher spending forecast unsettled investors. Brent crude traded just below $85 a barrel, up 12% for the week, as hostilities in the Middle East and weaker shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz added to inflation worries.