The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is having a fairly disappointing day of trading thus far this Thursday. At the time of writing, the ASX 200 is down by 0.66% at just under 7,450 points. Unfortunately for ASX tech shares, this sector is leading the ASX 200 losses today.
While the ASX 200 is ‘only’ down by 0.64%, the S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) has now lost more than 3% of its value.
We can see this in action with some of the ASX 200’s most prominent tech shares.
Take Block Inc (ASX: SQ2), the new owner of Afterpay. Block shares are currently enduring a nasty 4.3% drop at $170.59 a share.
Altium Limited (ASX: ALU) shares aren’t quite as deep in the dog house but are still down 3.13% right now at $33.60 a share.
Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) is faring slightly better again. This dataset company has lost 1.68% at $6.72 a share as it currently stands. It’s a similar story with Xero Limited (ASX: XRO), which is down by 2.56% at $102.19.
But WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) is really copping some ire. WiseTech share price has slumped 6.01% so far today and is now at $49.54 a share.
So why has the ASX 200 tech share sector taken such a battering today?
Why are investors selling off ASX 200 tech shares?
Well, it’s possible these moves have been spurred by the performance of the US tech sector overnight. Last night saw the NASDAQ-100 (INDEXNASDAQ: NDX) lose a hefty 2.17%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq is home to most of the prominent US tech shares, such as Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG)(NASDAQ: GOOGL) and Netflix Inc (NASDAQ: NFLX).
This in turn seems to have been sparked by hawkish comments from the US Federal Reserve, which seem to indicate that the Fed may be thinking about ramping up interest rate hikes.
Tech shares are particularly susceptible to higher interest rates seeing many of them trade on elevated valuations and higher growth expectations compared to other sectors on the market.
So that could be why we are seeing so many ASX tech shares getting steamrollered today.
The post Why are ASX 200 tech shares having such a dire day? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.
Should you invest $1,000 in Block right now?
Before you consider Block, you’ll want to hear this.
Motley Fool Investing expert Scott Phillips just revealed what he believes are the 5 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and Block wasn’t one of them.
The online investing service he’s run for over a decade, Motley Fool Share Advisor, has provided thousands of paying members with stock picks that have doubled, tripled or even more.* And right now, Scott thinks there are 5 stocks that are better buys.
*Returns as of January 13th 2022
More reading
- Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Thursday
- Why Andromeda Metals, ARB, BCI Minerals, and WiseTech shares are tumbling lower
- ASX 200 midday update: Magellan jumps, tech shares tumble
- March was a lousy month for ASX BNPL shares. Here’s why
- Broker says the Altium share price weakness is a buying opportunity
Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen owns Alphabet (A shares). The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Altium, Appen Ltd, Block, Inc., Netflix, and WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Alphabet (C shares). The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Block, Inc. and WiseTech Global. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Alphabet (C shares), and Netflix. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.
from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/yDq5Mjc
Leave a Reply