Asian markets slip on technology stock selloff

August 06, 2026 (MLN): Asian stock markets traded lower on Thursday, led by a broad selloff in technology shares after weakness in U.S. chipmakers weighed on investor sentiment overnight.

Japan's Nikkei 225 declined 0.51%, while the broader Topix edged slightly higher. South Korea's Kospi fell 1.84% at the open, although the small-cap Kosdaq gained 0.15%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was marginally higher, adding 0.1%.

Technology stocks came under heavy pressure across the region. In Japan, SoftBank Group dropped 4.57%, Tokyo Electron lost more than 5%, Advantest fell 4.66%, while memory chipmaker Kioxia plunged 11%, according to CNBC.

South Korean semiconductor stocks also posted sharp losses, with SK Hynix tumbling 6.67%, Samsung Electronics declining 2.85%, and Seoul Semiconductor slipping 2.88%.

The weakness followed a mixed session on Wall Street, where investors rotated out of technology stocks despite another record close for the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

The Dow advanced 263.24 points, or 0.49%, to finish at an all-time high and extend its winning streak to five sessions. In contrast, the S&P 500 eased 0.17%, ending a four-day rally, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.83% as profit-taking weighed on major technology names.

U.S. stock futures were mixed in early Thursday trading. Dow futures rose 113 points, or 0.21%, S&P 500 futures gained 0.15%, while Nasdaq-100 futures slipped 0.19%.

Investor optimism had initially been supported by strong corporate earnings and continued enthusiasm surrounding artificial intelligence.

Nvidia climbed more than 3% after SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said the company would rely exclusively on Nvidia chips for its AI infrastructure, although broader technology shares later retreated, with AMD and Alphabet ending lower.

Attention now turns to another round of corporate earnings, with Warner Bros.

Discovery scheduled to report before the opening bell, while Airbnb and Lyft are due to release results after the market closes. Investors are also awaiting U.S. weekly jobless claims data later on Thursday and the closely watched July nonfarm payrolls report on Friday.

Copyright Mettis Link News