Asian Markets Follow Wall Street Lower As Tech Stocks Tumble

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks followed Wall Street lower on Friday as a brief Nvidia-led rally faded and mixed U.S. jobs data left markets uncertain whether the Federal Reserve will cut rates in December.

The dollar was set for a weekly gain as growing uncertainty about the Federal Reserve's interest rate path prompted a pullback from riskier assets.

Gold and oil prices fell more than 1 percent after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky agreed to work on the 28-point peace plan drafted by the U.S. and Russia.

Chinese markets joined a global sell-off, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite index falling 2.45 percent to 3,834.89.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index finished 2.38 percent lower at 25,220.02, extending losses for a sixth straight session after having fallen more than 3 percent to a three-month low earlier.

Japanese markets lost ground as tech stocks slumped amid concerns over stretched valuations and AI investment profitability. Concerns about Japan's fiscal situation also weighed on markets after the cabinet approved a massive economic stimulus plan.

Data showed earlier in the day that Japan's October exports rose 3.6 percent year-on-year in October, beating forecasts. Core inflation rose to a three-month high, supporting the case for rate hikes.

The private-sector output grew at its fastest pace in three months on the back of resilient services.

The Nikkei average fell 2.40 percent to 48,625.88 while the broader Topix index finished marginally lower at 3,297.73. Technology investor SoftBank Group plunged 10.9 percent and semiconductor test equipment supplier Advantest plummeted 12.1 percent.

Seoul stocks closed sharply lower as valuation concerns weighed heavily on big-cap tech shares. The Kospi average nosedived 3.79 percent to 3,853.26. Samsung Electronics slumped 5.8 percent and SK Hynix lost 8.8 percent.

Australian markets hit a five-month low in a broad-based sell-off led by banks and miners. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 dropped 1.59 percent to 8,416.50 while the broader All Ordinaries closed down 1.67 percent at 8,686.30.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index slipped 0.15 percent to 13,419.40.

U.S. stocks gave up early gains to end sharply lower overnight as weak jobs data overshadowed post-Nvidia earnings euphoria.

The delayed jobs report showed the labor market added 119,000 jobs in September after a revised dip of 4,000 jobs in August.

Economists had expected employment to rise by 50,000 jobs compared to the addition of 22,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.

The unemployment rate ticked up from 4.3 percent to 4.4 percent, its highest level since 2021, heightening uncertainty surrounding the strength of the U.S. economy and the rate outlook.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 plunged 2.2 percent and 1.6 percent, respectively to hit over two-month lows while the Dow dipped 0.8 percent to a new one-month low.