Investing.com– Most Asian stocks fell on Thursday as rising U.S. Treasury yields pressured technology stocks, while weak economic prints from several regional economies also weighed on sentiment.
Regional markets took a weak lead-in from Wall Street, as heavyweight technology stocks fell amid pressure from high yields and as increased risk aversion saw investors lock-in recent profits.
Uncertainty over a tight presidential race and a slower pace of interest rate cuts dented Wall Street in recent sessions.
But U.S. stock index futures rose in Asian trade, buoyed by positive earnings from Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA).
Asia tech tracks US losses
Tech-heavy bourses were the worst performers in Asian trade, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street.
South Korea’s KOSPI lost 0.2%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 0.7%.
Tech stocks were pressured chiefly by rising U.S. Treasury yields, as markets positioned for a slower pace of interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.
The KOSPI was also dented by softer-than-expected gross domestic product data from South Korea, which showed the economy barely grew in the third quarter.
Still, there were some bright spots among Asian tech. South Korean memory chip giant SK Hynix Inc (KS:000660) rose 1% after posting record third quarter earnings on strong demand from artificial intelligence.
In Hong Kong, Horizon Robotics surged 28% in their first trading day after a $696 million IPO- the biggest Hong Kong IPO in 2024.
Chinese electric vehicle stocks lagged even as rival Tesla rallied sharply in aftermarket trade.
