Asian Stocks Pare Losses After US Tech-Led Selloff: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks trimmed earlier declines, following a slide in US tech shares, on speculation regional companies have a broader mix of operations that makes them more resilient to the software-driven selloff.
MSCI’s Asian gauge of equities pared an earlier drop of as much as 0.6%, boosted by a rotation into more economically sensitive industries such as financials and industrials. The US losses were fueled by concern the rollout of artificial intelligence will decimate software companies and hurt profitability across the tech industry.
Elsewhere, oil rose after the US Navy shot down an Iranian drone headed toward an aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea. The yen weakened before a Japanese election this weekend. Bitcoin dropped to its lowest since Donald Trump retook the White House just over a year ago.
“While Asia’s tech sector will see some overall pressure, energy and equipment and chip stocks should fare better than software,” said Matthew Haupt, a fund manager at Wilson Asset Management in Sydney. “The selloff in Asia tech should be less intense.”
Software stocks dropped from the open in Asia, tracking losses in their US peers. The selloff was triggered off by the release of a productivity tool for in-house lawyers by AI startup Anthropic. That led to a slide in shares associated with legal software and data services, and then snowballed to include much of the tech sector.
A Goldman Sachs Group Inc. basket of US software stocks sank 6% on Tuesday, its biggest one-day decline since April’s tariff-fueled selloff. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 Index fell 1.6%.
“This year is the defining year whether companies are AI winners or victims, and the key skill will be in avoiding the losers,” said Stephen Yiu, chief investment officer at Blue Whale Capital. “Until the dust settles, it’s a dangerous path to be standing in the way of AI.”
Bets on AI companies have dominated the US equity market for the past three years, but a growing number of investors are now wagering that the run, led by the “Magnificent Seven” megacaps, is giving way to broader market participation. A marked rotation has taken place in 2026, with value shares far outpacing growth.
Despite Tuesday’s US stock losses, most shares in the S&P 500 actually rose. FedEx Corp., an economic barometer, extended a record-breaking rally. Walmart Inc. topped $1 trillion in market cap.
Oil rose for a second day as geopolitical tensions resurfaced following the US downing of an Iranian drone near an American aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea. Brent advanced to around $68 a barrel, after adding 1.6% on Tuesday, while West Texas Intermediate was near $64.
The yen fell as traders positioned ahead of an expected victory by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s Liberal Democratic Party in this weekend’s election.
“A strong showing by the LDP will embolden Prime Minister Takaichi to advance her budget stimulus plans, raising the risk of a larger government debt burden and weighing on Japanese government bonds and the yen,” Carol Kong, a strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia, wrote in a note to clients.
Bitcoin extended its almost four-month slide, falling below $74,424.95, the lowest price of 2025, late Tuesday. That level was seen on April 7 after Trump’s initial tariff plan upended financial markets worldwide.
Bitcoin’s plunge may deepen into a self-reinforcing “death spiral,” inflicting lasting damage on companies that have spent the past year stockpiling the token, investor Michael Burry said.
Corporate Highlights:
Super Micro Computer Inc. shares gained in late trading after the company gave a forecast for sales in the current quarter that signaled strong demand for its gear to run AI data centers. Nvidia Corp. is nearing a deal to invest $20 billion in OpenAI as part of its latest funding round, according to people familiar with the matter, marking the chipmaker’s single biggest investment in the ChatGPT developer. Prudential Financial Inc. announced it would voluntarily suspend new life insurance sales in Japan for 90 days, in a move to restore trust after some former employees engaged in financial misconduct. Banco Santander SA agreed to acquire Webster Financial Corp. in a $12 billion deal that will allow Spain’s largest bank to bet big on the US. A KKR & Co.-led group agreed to buy data center operator STT GDC Pte for S$6.6 billion ($5.2 billion) in cash, marking the latest global deal in digital infrastructure supporting the boom in artificial intelligence. Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
S&P 500 futures were little changed as of 12:16 p.m. Tokyo time Nikkei 225 futures (OSE) fell 0.4% Japan’s Topix rose 0.1% Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.7% Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.7% The Shanghai Composite was little changed Euro Stoxx 50 futures were little changed Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro was little changed at $1.1823 The Japanese yen fell 0.3% to 156.28 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 6.9344 per dollar Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin rose 0.4% to $76,425.88 Ether fell 0.6% to $2,268.87 Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.27% Japan’s 10-year yield was unchanged at 2.255% Australia’s 10-year yield advanced three basis points to 4.87% Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.8% to $63.74 a barrel Spot gold rose 2.1% to $5,051.29 an ounce This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Rob Verdonck and Sara Hemrajani.
©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
