Asian stocks plunged on Thursday as technology firms suffered another rout after forecast-topping US inflation data fuelled expectations the Federal Reserve would further increase interest rates.
European stock markets were more resilient, benefiting from their lower exposure to the tech sector, as well as falling oil prices and government bond yields.
Seoul's Kospi plunged 7.6% to close at 5,554.22; Tokyo's Nikkei 225 was down 4.9% to 64,425.95; Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 1.0% at 24,062.72, while Shanghai's Composite dropped 1.6% at 3,707.48.
Taipei lost more than 3% as market heavyweight TSMC gave up 2% even after it announced a sixth straight run of record quarterly profit, fuelled by demand for AI hardware.
Seoul and Tokyo bore the brunt of the selling as traders bailed out of chipmakers, tracking sharp losses on Wall Street.
"The tech sell-off has continued with pace, exacerbated by US inflation data which increased expectations for US interest rate hikes this month," said Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell.
"US Treasury bond yields fell, suggesting that investors are moving into supposed lower-risk assets," he added.
Markets, already struggling with concerns about the outlook for the AI investment boom, were stung after data showed the US consumer price index jumped more than expected to 3.7% in September.
The inflation figures put pressure on the Fed to raise rates at least once more following September's hike, with the bank's decision due on October 28, a week before the US midterm elections.
Tech firms rely heavily on borrowing to fund their huge AI investments, meaning they are particularly sensitive to higher interest rates.