Asian technology and semiconductor stocks fell sharply on Wednesday, extending a global selloff driven by a surge in U.S. long-term bond yields that intensified valuation pressures on AI-related companies.
The U.S. 30-year Treasury yield briefly climbed to 5.337%, its highest level since 2007, while the 10-year yield held near 4.70%. The rise in yields followed an overnight decline in U.S. chip stocks and came as investors awaited the release of minutes from the Federal Reserve’s July policy meeting.
In Japan, SoftBank Group shares dropped more than 10% after a report in the Nikkei indicated the company plans to issue approximately 1 trillion yen ($6.26 billion) in corporate bonds targeted at retail investors, which would be the largest such offering by a Japanese firm. Renesas Electronics slumped 9%, while Kioxia Holdings plunged nearly 13%.
South Korea’s benchmark KOSPI index fell 5.2%, with Samsung Electronics down 7.5% and SK Hynix losing 10%. In Hong Kong, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp slid 6%, and Hua Hong Semiconductor tumbled nearly 13%.
U.S.-listed chipmakers also retreated, with Nvidia declining 2.3%, Micron Technology falling 7%, and SanDisk dropping 9%. The Nikkei 225 closed down 2.54% at 67,460.73.
The broad-based decline underscored the sensitivity of high-growth technology and semiconductor stocks to rising borrowing costs and shifting investor sentiment amid elevated long-term yields.
