On Friday morning (6 February, 9:29 AM, GMT+7, Bangkok time), major indices in the Asia Pacific fell sharply, with South Korea’s Kospi posting losses of up to 5%. The regional slump followed a significant tech-driven selloff in U.S. equities, rattling investor sentiment in global markets.
Market specialists noted that sectors driving recent gains—particularly technology, artificial intelligence, precious metals, and cryptocurrencies—have come under pressure. This week has proved challenging for investors with large allocations in these areas, as gold, other metals, and digital assets have also seen notable pullbacks.
Further pressure on sentiment came after U.S. labor data revealed a decline in monthly job openings to the lowest level since 2020. Jobless claims also increased, and job-cut announcements reached their highest level for January since 2009.
South Korea’s KOSPI plummeted by 2.05% to 5,057.77. Australia’s ASX 200 slumped by 1.71% to 8,737.00, while Japan’s NIKKEI climbed by 0.28% to 53,968.45.
As for stocks in China, Shanghai’s SSEC declined by 0.44% to 4,057.81. Shenzhen’s SZI lost 0.73% to 13,850.80, and Hong Kong’s HSI dropped by 1.68% to 26,434.26.
The U.S. stock markets edged down on Thursday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) decreased by 1.20% to 48,908.72. NASDAQ dipped by 1.59% to 22,540.58, and S&P 500 tumbled by 1.23% to 6,798.40. VIX soared by 16.79% to 21.77.
As for commodities, oil prices settled lower on Thursday, following news that the United States and Iran plan to begin discussions in Oman on Friday. The announcement reduced anxiety in the market about potential disruptions to Iranian oil exports. Brent crude futures fell by $1.91, closing at $67.55 per barrel, representing a decline of 2.75%. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude dropped $1.85, or 2.84%, finishing the session at $63.29 per barrel.
This morning, both Brent crude and the WTI futures remained unchanged.
Meanwhile, gold futures lost 1.55% to $4,813.60 per Troy ounce.
