Stocks in Asia Tumble as A.I. Uncertainty Jolts Tech Shares

Key Points:

• Oil prices dropped significantly on Friday, with Brent crude falling 4.3% to $71.99 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate crude falling to $69.23 a barrel, influenced by continued ship movements through the Strait of Hormuz despite Iran's recent attack on a container ship.
• Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has increased notably in the past week amid a 60-day ceasefire agreement between the U.S. and Iran, easing some concerns about supply disruptions in this strategic waterway.
• U.S. gasoline prices declined slightly by 2 cents to a national average of $3.90 per gallon, although prices have risen over 30% since the onset of the war, typically lagging crude oil price movements by a few days.
• Stock markets experienced continued volatility, with the S&P 500 dropping 2% for the week amid investor uncertainty about the future of artificial intelligence spending and mixed signals from major tech companies like OpenAI and SpaceX.
• Asian markets were hit hard, particularly South Korea’s KOSPI, which fell 5.8% due to concerns over A.I.-related inflationary pressures and weak performances by chipmakers Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, whose shares dropped 5% and 8%, respectively.