STOCKS | Asia Shares May Open Lower as AI Spending Slowdown Weighs on KOSPI and Nikkei

Asia shares may open lower. According to Sina Finance, after top AI executives called for a slowdown in frontier model development over the weekend, hardware-heavy stock indexes face the greatest risk. Regional stock index futures initially rose, but that optimism may fade as cash trading opens. Hyperliquid SK Hynix perpetual contracts fell sharply on Sunday, sounding a warning for Asia's AI infrastructure sector. On Monday morning, Nasdaq 100 futures are underperforming S&P 500 futures, and major Asian indexes are likely to start on a weak note. Large-scale AI capital spending has been a key driver of earnings growth and excess returns across Asia's AI supply chain, and investors may first cut risk exposure before reassessing fundamentals, leaving the KOSPI and Nikkei under pressure. Technology stocks also face a headwind from a sharp rise in oil prices, with Brent crude up more than 2%.