Japan's Nikkei plunges 4.8% as AI stocks fall on CoreWeave debt fears

Japan's Nikkei 225 plunged 4.8% to 64,489.06 at midday Thursday, its sharpest drop in recent months, as AI-linked stocks led a broad selloff triggered by concerns over US cloud firm CoreWeave's debt and hotter-than-expected US inflation data. Chip equipment makers Advantest and Tokyo Electron tumbled 13.9% and 7.3%, respectively, while SoftBank Group slid 9.4%. The selloff followed US CPI data that fueled expectations the Federal Reserve could raise rates sooner, weighing on debt-heavy tech companies. CoreWeave's stock fell over 15% despite CEO assurances, intensifying doubts about AI capital spending sustainability. Defensive sectors gained, with pharmaceuticals rising 3.4%, while market breadth was negative with 145 decliners versus 80 advancers.