Apple Demand Concerns Hits Regional Tech Sentiment

Asia Pac equities are down across the board, particularly in the tech related space. Only Indonesia's JCI has managed to hold gains today within the region. Sentiment was hurt early on a BBG headline, noting that that Apple has “ditched” an iPhone production increase on the back of faltering demand.

• This sent US futures lower across the 3 major contracts. At one stage Nasdaq futures were off by 1.3%. We are away from worst levels but still in the red. The next level of technical support for the S&P 500 contract comes in at the round number of 3,600.
• The spill over to tech plays in Asia has been evident. The Nikkei 225 is off around 2%, while HSI is down over 2.3%, dragged by a 2.76% fall in the etch sub index.
• The Kospi has fared slightly worse, down by close to 3%, the TWSE around 2.15%.
• Mainland China bourses are down, but have outperformed on a relative basis. The Shanghai Composite is off by 0.75%. A China Developer, CIFI Holdings, was down sharply though on fresh debt concerns. The company is the China's 13th largest building.
• Australian stocks are down by 0.7%, with energy related names helping drive outperformance.