On Thursday, Asia-Pacific markets broadly declined, extending the sell-off in Wall Street's technology sector, with chip stocks bearing the brunt of the losses. South Korea's Kospi index led the declines among major markets, with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix both falling over 4%. Precious metals plummeted, with spot silver dropping more than 15% during the session.
Overnight, weaker-than-expected first-quarter forecasts from U.S. chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices triggered a chain reaction in Asian tech shares, sending its own stock down 17%. Broadcom and Micron Technology fell 3.8% and 9.5%, respectively.
Analyzing the situation, Nick Twidale, Chief Market Analyst at AT Global Markets, noted that Asian markets are feeling the impact of Wall Street's overnight sell-off. He expressed uncertainty about whether tech stocks have peaked but suggested there is room for further correction, characterizing the move as a classic "sell tech, buy defensive" rotation.
The South Korean market faced the heaviest pressure, with the Kospi index declining 3.68%. Shares of Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix dropped 4.14% and 4%, respectively.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index edged down 0.73% to 53,898.35 points. However, the broader Topix index rose 0.23%, reaching a record high and becoming the only major index in the Asia-Pacific region to close in positive territory. SoftBank Group plunged sharply during the session, closing down 6.39%, after its chip design company Arm reported third-fiscal-quarter licensing revenue that fell short of expectations.
Bitcoin weakened in tandem with the tech stock sell-off, falling over 3%. After briefly dipping below the $73,000 mark, it extended its losses further.
Spot silver tumbled more than 16% during the day, breaking below the $74 per ounce level. Spot gold fell over 3%, dropping below $4,800 an ounce during the session.
In domestic markets, the main lithium carbonate futures contract hit its downside limit during trading. The main silver futures contract on the Shanghai exchange dropped over 7%, while the main platinum contract fell more than 8%. The SDIC Silver LOF fund fell by its daily limit for the fourth consecutive trading day, closing at 3.443 yuan, with its latest premium rate at 37.12%. Updates are ongoing.