South Korea Shares Lead Asia-Pacific Losses as Markets React to China’s Economic Data

Asia-Pacific markets declined on Monday, with South Korea recording the steepest losses, as investors assessed key economic numbers from China and followed a pullback in U.S. markets at the end of last week.

South Korea’s Kospi fell 2.16%, and the Kosdaq dropped 1.17%, weighed down by declines in major chipmakers. SK Hynix slid more than 4%, while Samsung Electronics lost 3.3%. The weakness followed Wall Street’s Friday retreat, where investors stepped back from recent gains in AI-related stocks.

In Japan, business sentiment improved even as markets traded lower. The Bank of Japan’s quarterly Tankan survey showed confidence among large manufacturers rising to +15 for the fourth quarter, the highest level in four years. The non-manufacturing index came in at +34. Despite the positive data, the Nikkei 225 was down 1.3% and the Topix slipped 0.27%.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 0.79%, while the mainland CSI 300 was little changed after China released several key economic indicators. Retail sales grew 1.3% in November, missing expectations for a 2.8% increase. Industrial production rose 4.8%, slightly below forecasts. The data reinforced concerns about slowing demand in the world’s second-largest economy.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.66%. Over the weekend, the country faced its worst gun attack in more than three decades, with at least 15 people reported dead.

Major Asia-Pacific market levels were broadly lower, with the Hang Seng, Kospi, Nikkei, Nifty 50 and other indexes all declining in early trade.

The market weakness followed a decline in the United States on Friday. The S&P 500 fell 1.07%, the Nasdaq Composite lost 1.69%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.51% after touching a record intraday high. AI-linked stocks came under pressure, with Broadcom sinking more than 11%, and declines in AMD, Palantir, and Micron contributing to broader losses.