Hong Kong-listed AI hardware stocks suffered a sector-wide rout, with Cambridge Technology and Guanghe Technology each plunging over 20 percent. The selloff followed Meta's signal of capex discipline that reignited concerns about overbuilt AI capacity, dragging Yangtze Optical Fiber Cable down 19 percent and ASAMT and Tianshu Zhixin down over 17 percent.
Hong Kong-listed AI hardware stocks plunged as much as 20 percent Thursday after Meta's abrupt signal of capex discipline reignited concerns about overbuilt AI capacity across the sector.
"AI demand may continue to grow but at a slower pace than expected," economists Megan Fisher and Vicky Redwood at Capital Economics wrote in a note. "Firms and investors may be underestimating the barriers to AI adoption."
Cambridge Technology (劍橋科技) and Guanghe Technology (廣合科技) each fell more than 20 percent, while Yangtze Optical Fiber Cable (長飛光纖光纜) dropped 19 percent. ASAMT and Tianshu Zhixin (天數智芯) each declined over 17 percent. The selloff tracked a violent rotation out of AI infrastructure names on Wall Street, where Meta's plans to sell off computing power triggered a broad tech rout. In U.S. trading Wednesday, Micron Technology tumbled 10.6 percent, Intel sank 9 percent, Advanced Micro Devices dropped 6.9 percent, Broadcom lost 2.2 percent and Nvidia slipped 1.3 percent. The S&P 500 fell 0.2 percent to 7,483.23, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite dropped 0.7 percent to 26,040.03.
The coordinated declines highlight mounting investor skepticism toward AI hardware valuations after months of massive investment by Big Tech companies. Surging demand for artificial intelligence had pushed AI and tech stocks higher in recent months, with markets in South Korea, Japan and Taiwan reaping big gains — the Kospi and Nikkei 225 had gained about 85 percent and 34 percent, respectively, this year before the selloff. South Korea's benchmark Kospi index sank 6 percent to 7,877.45, with Samsung Electronics tumbling 6.4 percent and SK Hynix losing 7.7 percent. Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 1.5 percent to 69,443.16, with chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron shedding 5.6 percent. Taiwan's Taiex declined 1.1 percent as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. fell 1.8 percent.
The Hang Seng Index bucked the regional trend, rising 0.8 percent to 23,060.63, supported by strength in local tech and auto names. Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD's shares rose 8.7 percent after reporting its sales rose for a second straight month. The Shanghai Composite index fell 0.9 percent to 4,075.58. The U.S. dollar traded at 162.39 Japanese yen after the yen fell to a four-decade low against the greenback.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
