Tech Stocks Fell in Asia after Wall Street Dip

Highlights:

• USA
  The Dow Jones cut 0.94% or 323.54 points, to 34,002.92. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 fell by 1.30% or 56.58 points, to 4,300.46. The Nasdaq, which lists the main technology companies, was the most affected, slumping by 2.14% or 311.21 points, to 14,255.49.
• ASIA
  The Nikkei slipped by 2.42% or 687.34 points, to 27,757.55.
  The Kospi lost 1.89% or 57.01 points to 2,962.17.
  The Hang Seng Index closed with a rise of 0.28% or 67.78 points, to 24,104.15.
• EUROPE
  The EuroStoxx 50 increased by 0.4%. Meanwhile, the FTSEEurofirst 300 added 0.37%, and the Stoxx 600 gained 0.34%.

Technology and Facebook sank and weighed on Wall Street 

The New York Stock Exchange ended sharply lower on Monday, weighed down by the tech sector, Facebook, and inflation fears.

The Dow Jones cut 0.94% or 323.54 points, to 34,002.92. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 fell by 1.30% or 56.58 points, to 4,300.46. The Nasdaq, which lists the leading technology companies, was the most affected, slumping by 2.14% or 311.21 points, to 14,255.49.

The health sector fell by 1.49%, and non-essential goods lost 1.07%.

Meanwhile, the energy sector registered a rise of 1.63%, coinciding with the meeting of OPEC and its allies. 

Last week, investors were affected by the fears of inflation and doubts about the Fed monetary policy as the US economy recovers. They are still concerned about the Chinese Evergrande crisis. 

Facebook – the biggest loser of the day

Facebook remained as the center of attention as one of the most critical losers of the session following the whistleblower interview and internal problems at the company.

The social network faced accusations from a whistleblower for the first time. They will testify before Congress on Tuesday to say that Facebook prioritizes profit rather than safety. A former employee leaked internal documents to The Wall Street Journal newspaper to expose its practices.

Internal research for the group has exposed that Instagram has harmful effects on the morale of teenage girls.

Moreover, millions of users globally could not access Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp, and Messenger for a few hours.

Because of the fall in Facebook shares, Mark Zukerberg lost $7 billion in a few hours. Facebook is one of the biggest capitalizations on Wall Street, only behind Apple, Microsoft, Google (Alphabet), and Amazon. 

The technology sector slipped by 2.36%, and the communications sector shed 2.11%. 

Facebook lost 4.89%, and its proprietary applications including Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger registered a general drop in various parts of the world.

Among the companies listed on the Dow Jones were led by Visa, which slipped by 2.49%. Apple shed 2.46%, Microsoft yielded 2.07%, and Salesforce declined by 1.60%. 

The pharmaceutical company MSD settled in the positive territory, gaining 2.09% after soaring 8% on Friday.

Nikkei followed the Wall Street decline

The Nikkei fell for the 5th consecutive day in a row. It slipped by 2.42% or 687.34 points to 27,757.55. 

The Topix lost 1.08% or 21.27 points, to 1,952.65.

Investors responded to the overnight rise in US crude futures, reaching their highest level in nearly seven years. Energy price rises appear to be a new risk factor in the prospects for global economic recovery, weighed down by the persistence of the pandemic. The recently unleashed Evergrande debt crisis also adds to the concern.

The shipping industry posted the most significant losses at the start of the session. Precision instruments and electronic devices sectors followed it.

The transport company Nippon Yusen accumulated the highest volume of operations and fell by 5.89%. Its competitor Mitsui OSK Lines was third by the number of transactions. Its shares plummeted by 7%.

Among other local benchmarks, the automotive manufacturer Toyota lost 1.39%. Meanwhile, the Softbank group dropped by 1.35%.

Video game developer and distributor Nintendo fell by 0.1%, and technology multinational Sony yielded 1.75%.

The oil company Inpex registered the biggest increase of the day, surging by 5%.

Kospi plunged by 1.89%

Kospi lost 1.89% or 57.01 points to 2,962.17. The uncertainty generated by the possible suspension of payments facing the US Administration and the Chinese real estate crisis weighed on the market.

The Kosdaq technology index fell by 2.83% or 27.83 points, to 955.37. 

Foreign investors and retailers were net sellers, yielding a combined net of about 980 billion won.

The technology giant Samsung Electronics, which has the greatest influence on the Kospi, lost 1.37%. Meanwhile, SK Hynix, the second-largest memory manufacturer, dropped by 2.1%. 

Samsung Biologics lost a significant 7.2% in the pharmaceutical sector, while its competitor Celltrion plunged by 12.11%.

Naver, the largest internet search engine operator in South Korea, closed with a decline of 3.01%. Meanwhile, Kakao, the country’s most popular messaging application, shed 4.29%. 

Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor, the largest vehicle manufacturer in the 

For its part, Hyundai Motor, the largest vehicle manufacturer in the Asian country, closed flat.

Hang Seng rebounded after hitting a year low

The Hang Seng Index closed with a rise of 0.28% or 67.78 points, to 24,104.15. 

Meanwhile, the Hang Seng China Enterprises lost 0.07 %.

Three of the four sub-indices settled in the positive territory. The Financial sector was the winner with a rise of 0.89%. The Services sector followed it, advancing by 0.48%, and Trade and Industry added a slight 0.02%.  

On the other hand, the Real Estate sector yielded 0.8% because of the uncertainties about the possible sale of the subsidiaries of the Evergrande group. Since Monday, the group has not been listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange. The sector also reacted to the announcement by another developer, Fantasia Holdings. It has not redeemed bonds that matured last Monday, and its share trading also remains suspended.

Vaccine stocks rebounded collectively today. Fosun Pharma soared by 15.12%, and Cansino Biotech rose over 6%. 

The oil and gas sector increased sharply, with PetroChina shares rising more than 7%. Also, China National Offshore Oil climbed by more than 2%.

Meanwhile, technology companies plunged. Tencent slipped by 1.53%, Alibaba lost 1.24%, and Meituan yielded 1.35%. Meanwhile, telecommunications companies closed higher with moderate increases. China Mobile gained 0.53%, and China Unicom added 0.25%. 

Europe is trying to rebound

The major European stocks are trying to rebound today. 

The EuroStoxx 50 increased by 0.4%. Meanwhile, the FTSEEurofirst 300 added 0.37%, and the Stoxx 600 gained 0.34%. 

Banking stocks rose in Europe due to the optimism of economic reopening. The technology sector rebounded after suffering from a rising bond that yielded the day before. 

Investors are still awaiting an announcement from the Evergrande and US jobs data on Friday to give them signs about the tapering timeline. 

Automakers declined by 0.2%. It followed the data about British new car registrations that slipped by 35% last month. The figure registered in September was the weakest in at least 23 years.