Markets in the Asia-Pacific region experienced a decline on Friday, mirroring the losses observed, as technology stocks faced ongoing pressure amid uncertainties regarding potential rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index experienced a decline of 1.77%, closing at 50,376.53, while the Topix fell by 0.65%, finishing the trading day at 3,359.81. Japanese giant SoftBank experienced a decline of nearly 9% in early trading, marking its third consecutive day of losses following the announcement on Tuesday that it had divested its entire stake in Nvidia. The shares of the conglomerate concluded the trading session down by 6.57%. South Korea’s Kospi declined by 3.81%, settling at 4,011.57, while the small-cap Kosdaq experienced a decrease of 2.23%, closing at 897.9. Index heavyweight Samsung Electronics experienced a decline of over 3%, while SK Hynix, a supplier of memory chips to Nvidia, saw a drop of 5%.

The South Korean currency appreciated by 0.72% to 1,460.0 following remarks from the finance minister on Friday, indicating that the country’s foreign exchange authorities will engage with significant market participants, such as the national pension fund and prominent exporters, to explore strategies for stabilizing the won, as per reports. The report indicates that Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol has informed senior economic officials of the necessity to address the structural mismatch in the supply and demand of U.S. dollars, in light of increasing apprehensions regarding volatility in the currency market. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 experienced a decline of 1.36%, closing at 8,634.5. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index experienced a decline of 1.79%, while the mainland’s CSI 300 fell by 1.57% to 4,628.14. This downturn followed the release of government data on Friday, which indicated that China’s economic slowdown intensified in October, primarily due to weak consumer demand and a worsening property market.

Fixed-asset investment, encompassing real estate, experienced a contraction of 1.7% over the first ten months of the year, a notable increase from the 0.5% decline recorded in the January-to-September timeframe. In October, industrial output experienced a year-on-year increase of 4.9%, falling short of the anticipated 5.5% growth and decelerating from the 6.5% rise observed in the previous month. In October, retail sales experienced a 2.9% increase compared to the previous year, surpassing the anticipated 2.8% growth indicated by a poll, although this marks a decline from the 3% year-on-year rise observed in September. The Chinese onshore yuan appreciated to a one-year peak of 7.0908 against the dollar, as indicated by data. In the U.S. overnight, all three major averages experienced declines as investors persisted in offloading shares of technology firms, particularly those involved in the artificial intelligence sector, due to concerns regarding their valuations. The Dow Jones Industrial Average experienced a decline of 797.60 points, representing a decrease of 1.65%, closing at 47,457.22, significantly below the record highs established in the prior session. The S&P 500 experienced a decline of 1.66%, concluding the session at 6,737.49.

The broad-based index experienced significant downturns in the information technology and communication services sectors, primarily driven by Disney, which declined nearly 8% following mixed results for its fiscal fourth quarter. The Nasdaq Composite experienced a decline of 2.29%, concluding the session at 22,870.36. All three major averages, along with the small-cap Russell 2000 index, experienced their most significant decline since October 10. Recent comments from colleagues of Fed chair Jerome Powell indicate significant concern regarding the central bank’s potential decision to implement its third consecutive policy easing during the upcoming meeting on December 9-10. “Given my baseline outlook, it will likely be appropriate to keep policy rates at the current level for some time to balance the inflation and employment risks in this highly uncertain environment,” stated Boston Fed President Susan Collins. Consequently, markets have adjusted their anticipations. Just a few days prior, traders were assigning a probability of at least 2-to-1 for a quarter percentage point cut; however, this sentiment has now shifted to a 50-50 chance, as per reports.