Asian markets plunge as AI stocks extend sell-off

Asian markets fell sharply Friday after a Wall Street sell-off driven by concerns over artificial intelligence investments. Japan's Nikkei 225 plunged 6.2%, South Korea's Kospi dropped 7.1%, and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 declined 0.7%. The losses followed Thursday's steep US decline, with the S&P 500 falling 4.4% and the Nasdaq tumbling 5.5%, now 11.9% below its record high. AI-linked stocks led the rout, with Nvidia falling 9.3% and Advanced Micro Devices dropping 17.3%, as investors questioned massive data centre spending and high borrowing costs. US midterm election results added uncertainty, with Democratic victories raising concerns about potential restrictions on data centre construction. Oil prices rose amid Iran war uncertainty, while investors moved to safer assets, with 10-year Treasury yields falling to 4.84%.