Asian Stocks Fall as Investors Shun AI Bets Before Earnings

South Korean and Japanese stocks fell sharply on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, despite a Wall Street tech rebound, as investors avoided Asian artificial intelligence bets ahead of a key earnings week. The KOSPI dropped 2.36% to 5,631.95, while Japan's Nikkei 225 lost about 0.6% to 64,512. The Korean decline was driven by renewed foreign selling of chip stocks, with SK Hynix falling 3.6% and Samsung Electronics down 1.5%. Investors also worried about a potential US listing of SK Hynix's Solidigm unit. In Japan, SoftBank Group fell 3.3%, reflecting sensitivity to AI infrastructure financing rather than just chip demand. Broader regional weakness persisted, with the MSCI Asia-Pacific index down 0.93% and Brent crude near $110 per barrel fueling inflation concerns. Nomura analysts suggested markets may be underestimating AI profitability, as infrastructure spending precedes revenue maturation.