Asian stocks fall as Seoul tech shares slide and AI worries return
What's new: South Korea's Kospi briefly sank more than 5% as traders weighed weak US tech earnings and awaited Friday's US jobs data.
Asian stock markets mostly fell Thursday as renewed doubts about artificial intelligence spending hit technology shares again, with South Korea leading the decline. Seoul's Kospi dropped more than 5% at one point, dragged by SK hynix and Samsung, while Tokyo's Nikkei lost about 2% and Hong Kong also slipped. The pullback followed a four-day rebound after a month-long tech sell-off. Investors were rattled by disappointing results from SanDisk and Western Digital, which revived concerns about whether heavy AI investment will translate into profits. Markets were also watching Friday's US payrolls report for clues on interest rates. Oil edged higher after Iran said it was finalizing arrangements with Oman over ship transit in the Strait of Hormuz.