Global equity markets, meanwhile, came under heavy pressure led by chip stocks. In South Korea, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix each tumbled more than 7%, sending the Kospi down more than 6%. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 2%, while an Asia semiconductor index dropped more than 3%.
The selling spread across Asian markets after the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, or SOX, slid 5% in the US a day earlier. A global bond selloff pushed the 30-year Treasury yield to its highest level since 2007, while the 10-year yield climbed near its highest since early 2025. That fueled concern that higher funding costs could weigh on Big Tech companies pressing ahead with large-scale investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Cryptocurrencies, by contrast, showed little sign of stress despite the broader retreat from risk assets. Ether rose about 1% to around $1,900, Solana gained about 2% to about $77, and XRP rebounded about 1% to near $1.
TRON and Dogecoin each added about 0.5%. BNB edged lower, while Hyperliquid fell more than 1%. Even so, HYPE remained the best weekly performer among major cryptocurrencies, up about 7% over the past week.
Investors are now watching the Federal Reserve's next policy signals. The US 10-year Treasury yield eased about 1 basis point to 4.69% on Aug. 19, offering some relief. Gold, after falling about 2% a day earlier, rose as much as 0.6% intraday to above $4,360 an ounce.
The Fed is due to release minutes from its July Federal Open Market Committee meeting at 2 p.m. Eastern time on Aug. 19. In a Reuters survey, 94 of 104 economists forecast that the benchmark interest rate would remain unchanged at 3.50% to 3.75% in September. Market pricing shows about a 68% chance of a pause that month.
