San Francisco Frontiers - Asian markets extend global retreat as tech worries build

The selling continued to be felt across assets, with silver taking another beating and bitcoin wiping out all the gains built up since Donald Trump's US election win.

January's bristling rally has given way to caution this month as traders grow concerned about stretched valuations in the tech arena and the wisdom of the investments pumped into AI amid questions about when they will see returns.

Those fears have increased during the earnings season as big-name firms unveiled eye-watering levels of planned spending for the sector: between them Amazon and Google parent Alphabet have outlined around $385 billion in possible outlays.

The panic has been compounded after AI startup Anthropic -- which created the Claude chatbot -- unveiled a tool that could replace numerous software tools including for legal work and data marketing.

All three main indexes on Wall Street saw hefty losses Thursday, with the Nasdaq leading the way down again meaning it has suffered its worst three-day period since Trump's tariff-induced April meltdown.

And the gloom carried into Asia, where Seoul -- which has led the region's rally thanks to its heavy tech weighting -- lost around five percent at one point.

Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, Taipei and Manila were also deep in the red, though Tokyo edged up.

"When AI starts to replicate tasks traditionally performed by professionals -- drafting, analysing, coding, reviewing -- it naturally raises questions about the long-term pricing power of certain software products," wrote Saxo Markets' Charu Chanana.

"Investors are no longer impressed simply by the presence of AI features.

"This is why the pressure has shown up most clearly in (Software as a Service): it's where the market is first forced to debate what AI will replace, who retains pricing power, and who absorbs the costs of adoption."

- Bitcoin in firing line -

Adding to the selling was data showing US monthly job openings hitting the lowest since 2020, while firms announced the most January job cuts since 2009 during the global financial crisis.

That ramped up concerns about the US economy.

Precious metals were once again on the receiving end of the selling juggernaut, with silver losing around 18 percent at one point before recovering to sit around $70 an ounce -- its lowest since December -- having topped out above $121 just a week ago.

Gold shed around two percent to sit just below $4,800, compared with its peak last Thursday of $5,595.

The commodities were hammered last weekend by a surge in the dollar -- after Trump picked a relative policy hawk to head the Federal Reserve -- and easing geopolitical tensions.

The flight from risk has sent bitcoin to depths not seen since October and was a whisker from breaching $60,000 -- wiping out all the Trump trade gains built up on hopes the president would introduce more crypto-friendly measures.

The digital unit has now lost more than half its value since touching its record high above $126,000 in October.

"Questions are now building around how far crypto can fall and where a durable bottom in bitcoin may form," said Chris Weston at Pepperstone.

"There is obviously no predefined level where buyers must step in, as this remains fundamentally a sentiment-driven market and sentiment toward crypto is now deeply negative.

"Rallies are short-lived, and sellers face little resistance from the buy-side making it straightforward for price to print lower lows. Buyers attempting to step in are effectively trying to catch falling knives."

Shares in British-Australian giant Rio Tinto fell more than two percent in Sydney after saying it would drop talks to merge with Swiss resources giant Glencore in a deal that would have created the world's biggest mining firm, worth about US$260 billion.

Rio's London-listed stock fell more than one percent.

- Key figures at around 0230 GMT -

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.5 percent at 54,073.52 (break)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.7 percent at 26,440.65

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.4 percent at 4,058.77

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1787 from $1.1784 on Thursday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3543 from $1.3541

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 156.79 yen from 157.02 yen

Euro/pound: UP at 87.03 pence from 87.02 pence

West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.3 percent at $63.09 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.3 percent at $67.36 per barrel

New York - Dow: DOWN 1.2 percent at 48,908.72 (close)

London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.9 percent at 10,309.22 (close)

A.Smith--SFF