Asian Shares Follow Wall Street Lower Amid Tech Valuation Concerns

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks followed Wall Street lower on Friday as investors fretted about lofty tech valuations and the U.S. economic outlook.

A mixed set of economic indicators from China and cautious comments from Federal Reserve officials on the rate trajectory also dented sentiment.

The dollar held losses while gold edged up toward $4,200 an ounce ahead of the release of reports on U.S. producer prices and retail sales along with speeches from several Federal Reserve officials later in the day.

Oil prices rose over 1 percent after a Ukrainian drone attack early on Friday damaged a docked ship, apartment buildings and an oil depot in the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiysk.

Also, Russia launched large-scale air strikes on the Ukrainian capital, damaging residential buildings across the city, further escalating the war in Ukraine.

China's Shanghai Composite index fell 0.97 percent to 3,990.49 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 1.85 percent to 26,572.46 as a slew of Chinese data signaled a further loss of momentum in October.

Data showed industrial production rose 4.9 percent year-on-year in the month, falling shy of expectations for an increase of 5.5 percent and down from 6.5 percent in September.

Retail sales were up 2.9 percent - exceeding expectations for 2.7 percent after rising 3.0 percent in the previous month. Fixed asset investment fell 1.7 percent from last year, missing forecasts for a decline of 0.9 percent following the 0.5 percent drop a month earlier.

The jobless rate came in at 5.1 percent versus expectations for 5.2 percent. House prices fell 2.2 percent year-on-year, matching September's decline.

Japanese markets fell sharply as tech stocks succumbed to profit taking due to concerns over sky-high valuations.

The Nikkei average tumbled 1.77 percent to 50,376.53 while the broader Topix index settled 0.65 percent lower at 3,359.81.

Advantest, Tokyo Electron and SoftBank Group lost 6-7 percent. Among the top gainers, TOPPAN Holdings soared 14 percent and Tokyo Tatemono surged 10.4 percent.

Seoul stocks lost ground due to selling by foreign investors on dwindling rate cut hopes.

The Kospi average plummeted 3.81 percent to 4,011.57 despite the U.S. agreeing to lower tariffs on Korean cars and auto parts and setting semiconductor tariff rates "no less favorable" than those applied to Korea's competitors, such as Taiwan.

Australian markets hit a new four-month low on Fed rate uncertainty and concerns about a slowing Chinese economy. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 fell 1.36 percent to 8,634.50, dragged down by bank, technology and material stocks. The broader All Ordinaries index dropped 1.41 percent to 8,907.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index ended down 0.98 percent at 13,464.46, extending losses from the previous session and hitting a two-week low.

U.S. stocks tumbled overnight, with the major indexes logging their weakest session in a month, as valuation concerns returned to the fore and mixed comments from Fed officials prompted investors to dial back expectations of interest-rate cuts.

The Congressional Budget Office estimated a delay in $50 billion spending and a 1.5 percentage point drop in GDP due to the shutdown.

Adding to the economic uncertainty, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that the October jobs and consumer price inflation reports are "likely never being released" as a result of the shutdown.

Separately, Kevin Hassett, President Trump's top economic advisor, said the October jobs reports will be released without a reading of the unemployment rate.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite plummeted 2.3 percent while the S&P 500 and the Dow both fell around 1.7 percent.