Asian Markets Also Shake from 'US CPI Aftershock'... Hong Kong Hang Seng Down 2.48%

Japanese citizens are passing in front of an electronic billboard in Tokyo displaying the Nikkei 225 index on the morning of the 14th. The previous day, the US Dow Jones index plummeted by more than 1,200 points in a single day, marking the largest drop in two years, and as a result, the Japanese stock market also fell by over 800 points.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Dong-hoon] As concerns over prolonged inflation (rising prices) spread, the aftershocks of the New York stock market's largest drop in over two years are intensifying. Asian stock markets and currency values also plummeted simultaneously on the 14th.

On that day, the Hong Kong Hang Seng Index closed at 18,847.10, down 479.76 points (-2.48%) from the previous closing price. Chinese stock markets also showed weakness, with the Shanghai Composite Index down 0.80% and the Shenzhen Component Index down 1.14%. Japan's Nikkei Average (Nikkei 225) fell 2.78%, and South Korea's KOSPI closed down 1.56% compared to the previous day.

Additionally, the Taiwan TAIEX Index (-1.59%) and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index (-2.58%) showed sharp declines of around 2% among major Asian stock indices.

The currencies of Asian countries also experienced significant volatility. The Japanese yen/dollar exchange rate, which recently rose to the 144-yen level for the first time in about 24 years, surged to 144.96 yen in early trading, threatening the 145-yen mark. The won/dollar exchange rate in the Seoul foreign exchange market jumped to 1,395.5 won during the session before closing at 1,390.9 won. This is the first time in 13 years and 5 months since the end of March 2009, during the global financial crisis, that the won/dollar exchange rate has surpassed 1,390 won.

Amid risk-averse sentiment, cryptocurrency prices also showed a downward trend. According to the cryptocurrency information site CoinMarketCap, Bitcoin is trading at $20,237.20, down 9.14% from 24 hours earlier, and Ethereum has fallen 6.50%.

Earlier, on the 13th (local time), according to the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) for August rose 8.3% year-on-year and 0.1% month-on-month, exceeding market expectations of 8.0% and -0.1%, respectively. Initially, there was hope that inflation would ease due to falling international oil prices, but this expectation was shattered.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.