Nasdaq sell-off batters Asian chip stocks as SK Hynix, Samsung, Softbank, TSMC tumble

Asian technology stocks tumbled Friday, tracking a sharp sell-off on Wall Street overnight that sent the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite into correction territory as renewed concerns over artificial intelligence spending rattled investor sentiment.

South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix plunged over 8%, while Samsung Electronics shed 7%. LG Innotek and LG Display fell 10% and 7.7%, respectively, as selling pressure spread across the country's technology sector.

The rout came as investors worried that Democrats' sweeping victory in the U.S. midterm elections could lead to tighter restrictions on data-center development, potentially slowing demand for AI chips and related infrastructure.

In Japan, semiconductor-related stocks also fell, with chip-testing equipment maker Advantest plunging 12.2%, while Tokyo Electron slid 7.3%. Technology investment giant SoftBank Group tumbled 11.6%.

Shares of memory chipmaker Kioxia Holdings fell nearly 10%, while Renesas Electronics declined 7.5%.

In Taiwan, semiconductor stocks also came under heavy selling pressure, with contract chipmaker TSMC sliding 9.6%. Electronics manufacturers Hon Hai Precision Industry , also known as Foxconn, and Foxconn Technology fell 9.4% and 9.1%, respectively, as the regional technology rout deepened.

The declines followed a brutal session on Wall Street, where the Nasdaq Composite sank 5.5%, amid mounting concerns over the sustainability of the AI investment boom and returns on massive data-center spending. It closed more than 10% below its recent peak. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index plunged 12.2%.