Asian stocks slide as chip selloff hits Nikkei, TSMC and futures
What's new: MSCI's Asia-Pacific gauge fell 2.1%, Brent neared $85 a barrel and Taiwan Semiconductor sank more than 4%.
Asian stocks fell sharply Friday after a deeper selloff in chip shares on Wall Street raised fresh doubts about stretched AI valuations. MSCI’s Asia-Pacific equities gauge dropped 2.1%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 4.4% and Topix fell 2.6%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slid 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 investors focused on its higher spending plans. Nasdaq 100 futures were down almost 1%, and S&P 500 futures lost 0.5%. Brent crude traded just under $85 a barrel, up 12% for the week, as Middle East hostilities and weaker shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz added to inflation worries.