"Asian Stocks" Asia-Pacific stock markets decline, with significant drops in Japanese and South Korean technology stocks. SK Hynix retreats 6% from its high, and the Australian stock market is dragged down by mining stocks

Major stock markets in the Asia-Pacific region fell this morning (2nd), affected by turmoil in the commodity markets. Japanese and South Korean tech stocks saw significant declines, while the Australian stock market was dragged down by mining stocks.

The mainland RatingDog manufacturing PMI rose to 50.3, exceeding expectations. The Shanghai Composite Index fell 54 points or 1.3% to 4,063 points; the Shenzhen Component Index dropped 199 points or 1.4% to 14,006 points. The Hong Kong Hang Seng Index decreased by 656 points or 2.4% to 26,730 points, with a turnover of HKD 178.1 billion. The Taiwan Weighted Index fell 651 points or 2% to 31,412 points. TSMC dropped 0.9%, while MediaTek, Delta Electronics, and Hon Hai fell between 2.7% and 3.3%.

Japan's Nikkei Index fell by 347 points or 0.7% to 52,975 points, having previously risen by 924 points to a high of 54,247 points, nearing its historical peak. Semiconductor AI concepts retracted, with Kioxia down 8.6%, Raytheon Technologies down 12.3%, and suppliers to Nvidia, Advandtest, falling 4.8% and 3.3%, respectively. SoftBank dropped 3%.

South Korea's KOSPI fell 189 points or 3.6% to 5,035 points. Memory chip giant SK Hynix retracted 6.4% from its historical high, while its investment company SK Square fell 9.8%. Samsung Electronics dropped 4.2%, and Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solutions each fell 3.5%. The SK Hynix double ETF (07709.HK) listed in Hong Kong was last reported at HKD 26.06, down 11.96%, with a turnover of HKD 1.248 billion.

India announced a reduction in import tariffs on raw materials and capital goods to promote local manufacturing, with the Nifty 50 Index rising 66 points or 0.3% to 24,891 points. Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone rose 2.7%, Tata Motors and Reliance Industries rose 2% and 1.2%, respectively. Tata Consumer Products rose 1.9%. India's largest IT outsourcing firm Tata Consultancy Services fell 0.8%, while its peer Infosys fell 1.3%.

The Australian S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 100 points or 1.1% to 8,768 points at the close. Mining stocks BHP and Rio Tinto fell 2.6% and 1.1%, respectively, while gold mining stock Newmont dropped 10%. The New Zealand Exchange 50 Index fell 10 points or less than 0.1% to 13,412 points at the close.

The Singapore Straits Times Index fell 16 points or 0.3% to 4,888 points. DBS Bank and OCBC Bank fell 0.8% and 0.7%, respectively, while Singtel and City Developments rose 1.5% and 1.4%, respectively, and Ascendas REIT rose 1.6%. The Indonesian stock market plummeted 5.2%, while the Thai and Philippine stock markets fell 0.2% and 0.3%. The Hanoi stock market in Vietnam rose 0.7%, while the Ho Chi Minh stock market fell 2.5%. The Malaysian stock market is closed for the holiday