Asian technology stocks fell Tuesday as a sell-off in U.S. semiconductor shares spilled into regional markets, with worries over artificial intelligence financing and intensifying competition denting sentiment.
Shares of South Korean chip giant SK Hynix, a leading supplier of high-bandwidth memory chips used in artificial intelligence applications, plunged more than 8%, while rival Samsung Electronics shed 7.9% — both hit their lowest intra-day levels since August.
In Japan, shares of tech-focused investment giant SoftBank Group sank 8.03%. The group, which has significant exposure to the global AI industry, led a broader retreat in Japanese semiconductor and electronics shares.
Tokyo Electron, a major supplier of chipmaking equipment, dropped 6.6%, while Advantest, which makes semiconductor testing equipment, declined 5.38%. Other Japanese technology stocks also came under pressure. Lasertec fell 4.76%, Disco lost 4.83% and Renesas Electronics shed 5.89%.
The declines followed a weak session for technology stocks on Wall Street, where the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.44% on Monday. U.S. memory chipmaker Micron Technology slid 3.9% as investors assessed intensifying competition from China's ChangXin Memory Technologies, or CXMT, which reported progress on a new chip structure.