Asian Markets Plunge as Seoul Drops 8% and Tokyo Falls 5%

Asian markets plunged sharply following a hotter-than-expected US inflation report, with Seoul's stock exchange falling 8% and Tokyo dropping 5% amid fears of further Federal Reserve interest rate hikes. South Korean chip giant SK Hynix tumbled 11% and Samsung fell 10%, while Japan's SoftBank dropped 10%. The selloff deepened across Asian semiconductor firms, with LG Innotek down 8.1% and Advantest losing 6.9%, as investors worried about AI investment financing costs. US consumer price index data for September rose faster than expected annually, fueling concerns the Fed may tighten policy more aggressively. Investors await additional producer price and retail sales data Thursday, alongside corporate earnings from regional banks.