Asian stock markets opened lower on Monday, following weekly declines in the three major Wall Street indexes. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.54 percent at the open and the Topix dropped 0.74 percent. South Korea’s Kospi lost 1.39 percent and the Kosdaq slipped 0.81 percent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 eased 0.24 percent.
In our own market data, the Nikkei 225 stood at 63,290.11 points at the 30 October close, down 2.12 percent on the day.
Tech stocks drag Wall Street lower
The weekly declines on Wall Street were modest for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average, each falling by less than 1 percent. The Nasdaq Composite fell about 2 percent over the same period, according to the record.
Pressure on US technology shares stemmed from investor doubts about how long companies can sustain spending on AI infrastructure. Alphabet and Microsoft projected capital expenditure below market expectations, while Amazon kept its annual capex guidance unchanged. The Nasdaq recorded its steepest monthly drop since March 2025 in October.
Defensive sectors draw money
The Dow rose nearly 2 percent in October, as investors rotated into defensive sectors such as healthcare. Anthropic’s IPO filing had earlier provided some positive sentiment for the sector.
Traders in the region are also weighing corporate earnings, US employment data and the US midterm elections this week.
Related: US stocks slip as tech shares sell off on AI spending worries · Tech earnings miss expectations, stocks turn negative
Data: Nikkei Inc.
