Nikkei, Kospi tumble over 6% as US AI sell-off hits Asia
What's new: South Korea halted trading for 20 minutes after the Kospi briefly sank 8.5%, while Singapore tech shares also slid.
Asian markets fell sharply Friday after a steep US tech sell-off rippled across the region, with investors worrying that Democratic gains in the US midterm elections could tighten oversight of AI infrastructure spending. Japan's Nikkei 225 and South Korea's Kospi each dropped more than 6% in morning trade, and the Kospi briefly slid 8.5% to 4,923, triggering a 20-minute circuit breaker. Singapore's Straits Times Index fell more than 2%. Chip and AI-linked names led the losses: Samsung Electronics fell nearly 10%, SK hynix dropped more than 11%, Tokyo Electron lost about 9%, and Kioxia shed 13%. In the US, the Nasdaq fell 5.5%, its worst percentage drop since April 2025.