Asian stock markets mostly fell on Friday following declines on Wall Street, where Nvidia’s stock drop dragged down overall market sentiment.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index edged up slightly to 38,645.63 after the government reported a slight increase in inflation to 2.5% in May, up from 2.2% in April.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.1% to 7,780.40, while South Korea’s Kospi index fell 0.9% to 2,782.43.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index dropped 1.7% to 18,022.42, and China’s Shanghai Composite index slipped nearly 0.4% to 2,993.57.
NYSE (Via Rose Mathers/Shutterstock)
On Wall Street on Thursday, the S&P 500 index fell 0.3% from its recent high to close at 5,473.17, while the Nasdaq composite index dropped 0.8% to 17,721.59. In contrast, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.8% to 39,134.76.
Nvidia, a major player in AI technology, saw its stock decline by 3.5%, ending an eight-week streak of gains. The company, which recently became the most valuable in the market, had been a beneficiary of the AI technology boom driving substantial growth in its stock price.
Nvidia’s chips are seen as pivotal in the AI sector, which is expected to bring significant advancements in productivity and profitability. The stock has risen sharply, up 164% this year following a more than tripling in value last year.
