Asia stocks slide as China chip threat hits Samsung, SK Hynix; oil retreats Roushni Nair Mon, October 12, 2026 at 11:47 PM EDT 4 min read CL=F -1.25% 005930.KS -8.17% SKHY -4.02% ^IXIC -0.44% ^NDX -0.71% Investing.com -- Asian stocks fell sharply on Tuesday as a selloff in technology shares spread from Wall Street, with concerns over Chinese semiconductor competition and the returns on artificial-intelligence investments triggering heavy losses in South Korea and Taiwan.
Before you buy NVIDIA: our AI model's stock picks are beating the market by 120%+. See the list now »
Oil prices eased but remained elevated amid escalating Middle East tensions, while investors braced for U.S. inflation data and the start of a busy corporate earnings season.
The MSCI AC Asia Pacific fell around 2%, putting it on track for its weakest close since August. South Korea's KOSPI plunged 7.2% to 5,923.37, its lowest level since July, while Japan's Nikkei 225 dropped 2.7% to 67,200.5 after returning from a long weekend.
Wall Street's technology selloff set the tone. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.5% on Monday as semiconductor stocks weakened, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index sank 2.7% to its lowest level since mid-September. In Asian trade, Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.8%, while S&P 500 futures lost 0.2%.
Brent crude slipped about 1.1% to around $105.50 a barrel, trimming its recent advance but remaining near a two-week high.
South Korean memory-chip makers bore the brunt of the selloff. SK Hynix fell 8.9%, while Samsung Electronics dropped 8%. LG Innotek slid 8.9%.
The selloff followed reports that China's CXMT is advancing a higher-density 4F² DRAM design, with next-generation server-memory products targeted for year-end, raising competition concerns for established chipmakers. CXMT shares fell 2.4%.
The technology selloff extended across the regional supply chain. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing fell 1.6%, Foxconn lost 2.1% and Largan slipped 0.6%. In Japan, Kioxia plunged 12.4%, TDK dropped 6.2% and Murata Manufacturing fell 6.9%.
High financing costs and stretched valuations are fueling doubts over AI spending returns, leaving technology stocks vulnerable to earnings disappointments after the S&P 500's nearly 120% rally from its 2022 low.
Not finding the right stocks? Our AI's list of investor-grade stock picks for October just dropped »
Broadcom Chief Executive Hock Tan added to investor caution on Monday, warning that some participants in the AI boom were taking positions without fully understanding the businesses or technology behind them.
Anna Wu, investment strategist and founder of Floodlines Research, said the semiconductor sector had become especially sensitive to any sign of disappointment after its strong gains.
She noted that, across 14 major AI companies, 23 of 42 earnings reports this year had beaten forecasts without winning a positive market reaction. In the latest reporting season, six of the 14 companies that beat estimates were still sold or ignored, compared with seven and 10 in the first two seasons, respectively.
Brent crude traded around $105.50 a barrel as investors weighed Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia against the prospect of increased Russian diesel supplies.
Iran-backed Houthi forces struck Riyadh's main airport over the weekend, raising fears of wider conflict, while Trump's claim of a Russia-Ukraine energy truce remained unconfirmed and his proposal for Russia to boost diesel exports drew bipartisan legal concerns.
Investors are now looking to Wednesday's U.S. consumer price index report for clues on the Federal Reserve's next move. Producer prices and retail sales are also due later in the week. Any upside surprise in inflation could revive expectations of tighter policy and renew pressure on long-term yields.
Japan's producer-price inflation eased to 6.8% in September from 7.6% in August, below forecasts, but a 24.5% jump in yen-based import prices amid currency weakness and higher raw-material costs could keep pressure on the BOJ to tighten policy at its October 29-30 meeting.
The RBA's September minutes showed a unanimous 25-basis-point rate hike to 4.60%, driven by energy prices, AI-related demand and capacity constraints, despite slowing output growth, weaker household spending and gradually easing labour-market conditions.
Meanwhile, third-quarter earnings from major U.S. banks begin Tuesday, with JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup and Wells Fargo due to report. Bank of America and Morgan Stanley follow on Wednesday.
Asia stocks slide as China chip threat hits Samsung, SK Hynix; oil retreats
Nasdaq futures slide amid chip selloff; Q3 earnings, inflation data loom
Samsung, SK Hynix shares plunge on China competition fears
