Asia stocks slide as chip rout deepens, Chinese automakers hit by EU trade curbs Roushni Nair Mon, October 12, 2026 at 11:47 PM EDT 4 min read CL=F -1.91% 005930.KS -7.39% SKHY -4.02% ^IXIC -0.44% ^NDX -0.71% Investing.com -- Asian stocks fell on Tuesday as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix extended losses on fears of intensifying Chinese competition, deepening a technology selloff that spread from Wall Street.
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Chinese automakers also came under pressure after September retail sales slumped, while investors weighed elevated oil prices, upcoming U.S. inflation data and the start of corporate earnings season.
South Korea's KOSPI fell 5.8%, after dropping more than 7% earlier, while Japan's Nikkei 225 lost 1.9%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng slipped 0.09%, while the CSI 300 edged up 0.03% and the Shanghai Composite gained 0.25%.
Wall Street's technology selloff set the tone overnight. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.5% on Monday, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index dropped 2.7% to its weakest level since mid-September. In Asian trade, Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.7% and S&P 500 futures slipped 0.1%.
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%.
Adding to pressure on South Korean equities, President Lee Jae Myung said the country would likely need to raise interest rates soon to narrow the gap with U.S. rates and align with global monetary tightening. South Korea's benchmark rate stands at 3.00%, below the Federal Reserve's 3.75%-4.00% range, raising the prospect of higher borrowing costs even as household debt and default risks remain concerns.
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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%.
Meanwhile, Chinese automakers fell broadly as September passenger-car retail sales dropped 28% year-on-year to 1.618 million, marking a 12th consecutive monthly decline, while an EU-China agreement to curb Chinese hybrid-car imports added to export concerns.
The agreement could cut hybrid shipments to the bloc substantially, although implementation details remain pending; Great Wall Motor fell 2%, BYD lost 1.9%, SAIC Motor slipped 0.7%, Leapmotor dropped 0.9%, XPeng fell 2.1% and NIO lost 1.6%, while Geely rose 1.8%, Chery gained 0.2% and Li Auto added 0.5%.
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 chip rout deepens, Chinese automakers hit by EU trade curbs
Nasdaq futures slide amid chip selloff; Q3 earnings, inflation data loom
European stocks buck tech-led global rout, bank earnings in focus
