Emerging Markets-Asian stocks retreat as oil spike compounds tech selloff

Markets now turn their focus to Singapore's central bank meeting next week, with the Monetary Authority of Singapore expected to keep monetary policy unchanged. Emerging Asian equities returned to negative territory on Friday, led by South Korea, as higher oil prices rekindled inflation concerns and heavy AI spending by U.S. tech giants unsettled investors. Sentiment soured after Alphabet GOOGL.O and Tesla TSLA.O, the first of the "Magnificent Seven" to report this earnings season, highlighted hefty AI infrastructure spending that raised fresh questions over returns on such outlays. South Korean shares bore the brunt of the regional selloff, with the KOSPI .KS11 falling 5.7% by the close after three straight sessions of gains and ending the week 1.9% lower. AI memory maker SK Hynix 000660.KS and rival Samsung Electronics 005930.KS fell 8.3% and 7.4% respectively. Taiwan stocks .TWII lost 2.7% at close, though they were still up 2.3% on the week. "Concerns over whether hyperscalers can justify massive AI capex are weighing directly on Korea's memory makers and Taiwan's chip supply chain," said Glenn Yin, director of research at ACCM. "Korea is probably the most exposed because it sits at the intersection of both risks: semiconductors dominate exports while the economy is highly dependent on imported energy." Crude prices surged above $100 overnight, reigniting inflation worries across energy-importing emerging Asian economies on Red Sea attacks and disrupted Hormuz traffic. In Southeast Asia, Philippine stocks .PSI slipped as much as 1.5% to their lowest since July 6. The Philippine peso PHP= weakened to 61.86 per dollar, headed for its sixth straight week of losses and hovering near a record low of 61.933 against the greenback. The Philippines' heavy reliance on imported fuel leaves it especially exposed to supply disruptions and price swings during geopolitical crises. At the height of the conflict in March, concerns over fuel supply and prices briefly forced the suspension of electricity trading on the country's Wholesale Electricity Spot Market. Indonesian stocks .JKSE dropped as much as 2.4%, marking their sharpest intraday decline since late June, while the rupiah IDR= hovered just above the key 18,000-per-dollar level. In Malaysia, stocks .KLSE slipped 0.5%, while the ringgit MYR= edged lower to 4.091 against the dollar. Among other regional currencies, the South Korean won KRW=KFTC firmed to 1,462.2 per dollar and was set for a near 1.3% gain for the week. Meanwhile, Taiwan's dollar TWD=TP slipped to 32.452 against the greenback.

Emerging Markets-Asian stocks retreat as oil spike compounds tech selloff

Markets watch Singapore central bank meeting

Asian stocks fall on oil and AI-spending worries

South Korea and Taiwan lead regional tech decline

Currencies and local markets weaken in Southeast Asia

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