Chinese shares closed lower on Wednesday, tracking losses on Wall Street amid a selloff in technology stocks and rising U.S. Treasury yields.
The Shanghai Composite Index, the main gauge of Chinese stocks, closed 2.4% lower to 3,894.42. The Shenzhen Component Index plunged 5.0% to 13,890.15.
Tech stocks fell hard, with the SSE STAR 50 Index (SHA:000688), the benchmark for the 50 largest science and technology companies on the Shanghai bourse, plunging 7%.
Concerns over debt financing for artificial intelligence projects in the U.S. stock market are intensifying, with investors increasingly pricing in the risks associated with AI-related capital expenditure, according to China Fund News.
Also exacerbating risk-off sentiment was the 4.72% rise in the 10-year U.S. Treasury note, marking its highest level in several months.
The upward pressure on overseas rates reflects vigorous capital spending in AI and escalating energy costs, Northeast Securities said, adding that prolonged high interest rates would eventually restrain economic expansion and place negative pressure on China's export performance.
In company news, Unitree Robotics (SHA:688836) shares closed at 845yuan apiece on their first day of trading on the Shanghai Stock Exchange's STAR Market board Wednesday. This marked a 460% jump from the robotics company's initial public offering price of 150.80 yuan.