Asian shares wobble as tech rout boosts bonds, dents rate hike bets

Asian equities fell unevenly as a selloff in technology stocks spread through the region, while government bonds rallied as investors sought safety. The move reduced the probability that markets were pricing in further central bank rate hikes, since weaker tech sentiment and softer risk appetite point toward slowing growth and easing inflation pressure. The Nasdaq 100 (NDX) is the most directly exposed benchmark, given its heavy weighting in semiconductor and large-cap software names that tend to be sensitive to shifts in the discount rate applied to future earnings. Traders will watch the next US consumer price index release and Federal Reserve commentary, since an inflation print that confirms cooling would reinforce the bond rally and could further compress rate expectations that currently weigh on growth-oriented equities.

The Nasdaq-100 (NDX) is the US large-cap tech benchmark. NDX is more sensitive to rate decisions than SPX because of longer-duration cash flows, and heavily concentrated in Tech/Comms names — mega-cap earnings season dominates price action.

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