SoftBank Leads Tech Sell-off as AI Spending Fears Hit Asian Markets

## Japanese Tech Stocks Tumble as AI Spending Concerns Ripple from Wall Street

**Tokyo, Japan –** A wave of apprehension over Artificial Intelligence infrastructure spending, originating from Wall Street, washed over Asian markets on Thursday, triggering a significant sell-off in Japanese tech stocks. SoftBank Group Corp. found itself among the prominent decliners, shedding as much as 7.25% in early trading, contributing to the benchmark Nikkei 225 index’s slide. While the conglomerate managed to pare some of its losses, it remained down 3% by the close, leading Asian market retreats with the Nikkei falling 1.23%.

This downturn mirrors the sentiment on U.S. exchanges, where the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite experienced a 1.81% decline overnight. The losses were largely driven by a retreat in major AI-focused companies, including Oracle, Broadcom, and Nvidia.

The pressure on Oracle intensified following a report from the Financial Times on Wednesday, which indicated that financing plans for the cloud infrastructure giant’s proposed $10 billion data center in Michigan had encountered significant roadblocks. This news surfaced shortly after Oracle publicly refuted a previous report suggesting a delay in certain projects for AI leader OpenAI until 2028.

SoftBank, a company heavily invested in the burgeoning AI landscape, has experienced considerable stock volatility in recent weeks. The market’s growing concerns about the sustainability and scale of AI infrastructure investment have cast a shadow over the conglomerate. Earlier this year, SoftBank revealed an ambitious plan to invest $500 billion in U.S. AI infrastructure in collaboration with OpenAI, Oracle, and other partners. This initiative includes the development of five new U.S. AI data center sites under the “Stargate” platform, OpenAI’s comprehensive AI infrastructure initiative.

The ripple effect of these concerns was evident across other Japanese technology firms. Advantest, a key supplier of semiconductor testing equipment, saw its shares drop as much as 5%. Fellow industry players, including Lasertec, Renesas Electronics, and Tokyo Electron, experienced declines ranging from 3% to 4%.

Jesper Koll, an expert director at Monex Group in Tokyo, highlighted the unique position of Japanese technology companies within the AI ecosystem. “Much of what goes into data centers, power centers, and AI hardware enablers is ‘Made in Japan,’ and can only be made in Japan,” Koll observed. This domestic manufacturing strength, he explained, renders Japanese tech stocks, particularly those linked to AI, more susceptible to shifts in U.S. spending sentiment.

Supporting this observation, Japan’s latest trade figures released on Wednesday revealed a robust 7.4% increase in exports of electrical machinery and a substantial 13% surge in semiconductor-related exports year-on-year. Koll noted that the current tech spending surge, largely propelled by the U.S., is directly translating into heightened demand for Japan’s specialized machinery and equipment.

In contrast, the impact on other major Asian tech players was less severe. South Korean chip titan Samsung Electronics saw a modest 0.93% dip, while SK Hynix managed to reverse early losses, closing 0.73% higher. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chip manufacturer, experienced a marginal decline.