Asian stock markets plunge as AI regulation worries mount after US midterms

A decisive victory by the Democratic Party in the United States midterm elections has sparked fresh concerns over stricter regulations targeting the artificial intelligence industry, triggering a wave of selloffs that spread from global to Asian markets. Losses deepened on the stock exchanges in Japan and South Korea, while Taiwan’s benchmark index entered bear market territory. Efforts by financial authorities to stabilize markets in the region and a recovery in US index futures helped limit some of the declines in later trading. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell by 3.8%, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 index dropping 5.8%.