US tech and AI sell-off triggers sharp declines across Asia-Pacific markets as South Korean and Japanese stocks enter bear territory

After the US AI sector suffered a severe selloff on Thursday, panic spread to Asian markets, and on Friday morning, November 6, 2026, equities across the Asia-Pacific region plunged together. According to a report by Eastmoney that day, as of press time the MSCI Asia Pacific Index was down 3% at 247.75 points. South Korean stocks led the decline across the region: the Kospi opened with a crash, at one point plunging 8%, breaking below the 5000 level and triggering a circuit breaker, while the smaller Kosdaq fell more than 7%. As of press time, the Kospi was down 47% from its record high of 9385 points set in June, deepening its bear market. South Korea's two largest chipmakers were hit hardest: as of press time, Samsung Electronics was down nearly 10% and SK Hynix had plunged 11.7%. South Korea's Ministry of Economy and Finance said it would not rule out spillover from the US decline hitting global markets, and that it would take necessary measures to prevent excessive moves unrelated to fundamentals. Japanese markets also sold off sharply: the Nikkei 225 opened down more than 2% and the Topix fell 2.9%, with losses widening afterwards. As of press time, the Nikkei 225's drop had extended to more than 6%, putting it more than 20% below its June peak and in bear-market territory as well. On the individual stock front, SoftBank Group tumbled 16%, its biggest one-day fall since August 2024; memory chipmaker Kioxia fell 14%, and semiconductor equipment maker Tokyo Electron dropped nearly 9%. The Standard & Poor's / ASX 2 and other Australian markets also experienced heavy declines, though the report's account of the Australian market cuts off at that point.