Asia-Pacific markets set to fall, tracking AI-fuelled losses on Wall Street

Asia-Pacific markets were set to open lower Friday after fears about artificial intelligence disruption in the U.S. sent the S&P 500 to a third straight day of losses. Certain pockets of the U.S. stock market have been hit this year by the release of AI tools that could replicate their businesses — or at least eat into their profit margins.Shares of several trucking and logistics companies declined on fears that new AI tools could slash major freight inefficiencies, leading to less demand for the industry's services.Real estate and financial stocks were also casualties, with commercial real estate brokers extending losses for a second straight day.Investors in Asia were watching for any spillover effects, though Taiwan — the most prominent market in the AI space — was closed for the Lunar New Year holiday. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was 0.71% down in early trade.Japan's Nikkei 225 futures signaled a weaker open after the market returned from a public holiday, with the Chicago contract at 56,880 and its Osaka counterpart at 56,820, compared to the previous close of 57,639.84Hong Kong's Hang Seng index futures were at 26,703, lower than the index's last close of 27,032.54.Overnight on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 1.34%, led lower by Cisco Systems, which slid 12% after the firm issued disappointing guidance for the current quarter. The S&P 500 dropped 1.57%, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 2.03%.—CNBC's Sean Conlon, Pia Singh and Sarah Min contributed to this report. Got a confidential news tip? We want to hear from you.Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inboxGet this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services.© 2026 Versant Media, LLC.

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