Alert! Today, global stock markets were hit hard by "Black Friday," with Japanese stocks and chip stocks becoming the main targets of selling.

Affected by expectations that Japan's domestic monetary tightening policy will further tighten, the Japanese stock market experienced its worst decline since 2016. The Nikkei 225 index closed down 5.8%, and the Topix index fell 6.1%. The MSCI Asia-Pacific Index plummeted by nearly 3.3%, marking the largest drop since February 2022.

Market concerns about the US economy have intensified. Unexpectedly rising unemployment data, and the ISM manufacturing PMI index contracting at its fastest pace in eight months, indicate that the US manufacturing industry is deeply mired in a recession, further intensifying market pessimism about the economic outlook.

Overnight, disappointing earnings reports from US tech giants have cooled optimism about AI, and Asian chip stocks have followed the US stock market down. Investors are closely watching the US non-farm data for July, which will be announced tonight.

The Nikkei 225 plunged 5.8%, losing the 36,000 point mark

On Friday, Japanese stocks opened low and continued to decline, with the Nikkei 225 index closing down 5.8%, breaking below 36,000 points, at 35,909.70 points.

The Japanese Topix index closed down 6.14%, marking the largest drop since 2016, with financial stocks leading the decline. After the Bank of Japan raised interest rates, technology companies and banks dragged down the benchmark Topix index.

Yamato Securities' stock price plummeted by 21% during the session, setting a record for the largest intraday drop, following the release of its first-quarter report, which fell short of expectations.

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group plummeted by 11.2%. Toyota's stock price fell by 3.4%, Sony Group's stock price fell by 6.6%, and SoftBank Group's stock price fell by 7.7%.

Chip manufacturer Tokyo Electron fell by 11.1%, and chip equipment manufacturer Lasertec Corp. fell by 10%.The Taiwan Stock Exchange Capitalization Weighted Stock Index fell by 4.4% to 21,638.09 points. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, the world's largest chipmaker, dropped by 5.9%.

The Australian stock market index, S&P/ASX 200, closed down by 2.1% at 7,943.20 points. The yield on Australia's three-year government bonds fell by 11 basis points to 3.63%.

India's SENSEX index declined by 1%, reaching 81,200.52 points. The Bangkok SET index fell by 0.5%.

The assassination of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders yesterday further intensified investors' concerns that conflicts in the Middle East could escalate into a broader war. On Friday, oil prices surged, with U.S. crude oil rising by 0.8% and Brent crude oil by 0.74%, while the price of spot gold increased by 0.65%.

José Torres, a senior economist at Interactive Brokers, stated in a commentary:

Federal Reserve Chairman Powell conveyed a strong likelihood of a rate cut in September, but this fleeting sense of satisfaction has turned sour as investors are now panicking over the central bank's failure to cut rates sooner.

Billy Leung, an investment strategist at Global X Management, said that the U.S. economy would also hurt Asia:

As manufacturing and employment data point to recessionary levels, investors are now questioning whether the Federal Reserve has cut rates too late.