Nikkei, Yen, Hang Seng: Stock markets in Asia mixed after US midterm elections - technology stocks collapse

Investors fear that the Democrats' election victory could slow the expansion of AI data centers. While chip stocks are under pressure, industries in Japan are benefiting from falling oil prices.

Tokyo Stock Exchange: The Topix is ​​rising while the technology-heavy Nikkei is falling. Photo: Eugene Hoshiko/AP/dpa

Seoul/Tokyo/Singapore. Falling oil prices following the Democrats' victory in the US midterm elections are boosting the overall market in Japan. However, technology stocks slumped on concerns about the AI ​​industry.

The technology-heavy Nikkei index fell 0.8 percent to 61,687 points.

The broader Topix was trading 1.5 percent higher at 3,955 points.

The Shanghai Stock Exchange remained almost unchanged at 3,690 points.

The CSI 300 index with the 300 most important Chinese companies on the mainland stock exchanges rose by 0.4 percent to 4,116 points.

The leading index Kospi lost four percent to 5,460 points.

The Nikkei was weighed down by stocks such as chip suppliers Advantest and Tokyo Electron, which fell 10.3 percent and 8.6 percent respectively. “Capital that previously flowed into AI and semiconductors is now being reallocated to other sectors,” said Wataru Akiyama, equity strategist at Nomura Securities. “There is a growing view that Democratic electoral gains will delay data center projects, potentially making the current pace of earnings growth unsustainable.”

Investors in Japan shifted their positions to other sectors. Of the 33 industry groups on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, 25 rose. The list of winners was led by the real estate sector with an increase of 6.5 percent and the retail sector with an increase of 5.4 percent. Shares of Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing rose 7.9 percent. Toyota climbed 5.3 percent ahead of the balance sheet presentation expected in the afternoon. Sony and Nintendo, which report their results after the market close, rose 6.6 percent and 4.6 percent respectively.

In South Korea in particular, concerns about a slowing AI boom after the US midterm elections are weighing on the stock market. Trading was temporarily suspended after a price slide of more than five percent. The shares of the chip manufacturer Samsung Electronics fell by 5.73 percent, those of its competitor SK Hynix lost 7.52 percent. Bucking the trend, the securities of the car manufacturers Hyundai and Kia rose by 3.70 percent and 4.38 percent respectively.