Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed on Wednesday as regional equities mirrored Wall Street’s overnight declines, with investor sentiment pressured by deepening concerns over stretched valuations in artificial intelligence-related stocks.
By 11:50 pm AEDT (12:50 am GMT), Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was flat, Japan’s Nikkei 225 edged 0.3% higher, and South Korea’s Kospi 200 slid 1.1%.
On the data front, Japan’s monthly machinery orders surprised to the upside. Private-sector machinery orders, excluding volatile orders for ships and electric power companies, rose a seasonally adjusted 4.2% in September, beating expectations for a 2.5% increase and reversing a 0.9% decline in the previous month.
In Australia, the quarterly Wage Price Index increased 0.8% in the September quarter of 2025, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Michelle Marquardt, head of prices statistics at the ABS, noted: “Annual wage growth to the September quarter 2025 was 3.4 per cent. Annual wage growth remained steady compared to the June quarter 2025 but was slightly lower than this time last year.”
Overnight in the U.S., equity benchmarks closed near monthly lows. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.1%, the S&P 500 fell 0.8%, and the Nasdaq Composite retreated 1.2% as the tech-led sell-off continued.
In commodities, Brent crude gained 1.1% to settle at US$64.89 per barrel, while spot gold recovered from weekly lows, rising 0.5% to US$4,067.43 per ounce.
In China, the Shanghai Composite slipped 0.8% to 3,939.8 and the CSI 300 declined 0.7% to 4,568.2 on Tuesday.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index dropped 1.7% to 25,930.0, while India’s BSE Sensex eased 0.3% to 84,673.0.
European markets also extended losses on Tuesday. London’s FTSE 100 fell 1.3% to 9,552.3, Germany’s DAX dipped 1.7% to 23,180.5, and France’s CAC 40 slid 1.9% to 7,967.9.
