On Tuesday (local time), the three major U.S. stock indices closed lower as a sell-off in global artificial intelligence (AI) and semiconductor stocks intensified, coupled with growing caution regarding the Federal Reserve's monetary policy.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 45.87 points (0.09%) to close at 51,666.84.

The S&P 500 index dropped 107.33 points (1.44%) to 7,365.46, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index slid 579.56 points (2.22%) to 25,587.04.

The New York market was influenced by a bearish trend originating from Asia, where the KOSPI index in South Korea plummeted by approximately 10%, with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix both plunging by about 12%.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell 7.6% as concerns over AI-related valuations and potential market peaks spread.

Among individual stocks, Micron, which is awaiting its earnings report, fell 13.2%.

Major semiconductor companies also saw broad declines, including Qualcomm (-8.0%), Intel (-6.1%), and AMD (-6.0%).

Profit-taking continued, primarily targeting large-cap tech stocks such as Nvidia (-3.6%) and Tesla (-5.7%).

Conversely, the Dow's decline was relatively limited as investors shifted toward defensive stocks, such as Walmart (1.9%) and Johnson & Johnson (3.4%).

IBM rose about 5% following an upgrade in its investment rating.

Uncertainty regarding the Fed's future monetary policy was reflected in the foreign exchange and bond markets.

This was driven by growing market speculation that the Fed might raise interest rates in September to combat inflation.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback's value against major currencies, rose 0.4% to 101.38, reaching its highest level in a year.

Consequently, the yen-dollar exchange rate traded at around 161.56 yen per dollar, with the value of the yen nearing a 40-year low.

The euro also fell below 1.138 dollars to hit a one-year low as expectations for additional tightening by the European Central Bank (ECB) weakened.

U.S. Treasury yields, which had surged recently, showed signs of consolidation today.

The yield on the 2-year U.S. Treasury note fell 5 basis points (1bp=0.01%) from the previous day to 4.23%.

However, it remained at its highest level in 16 months.

The 10-year yield traded at 4.49%, down 2 basis points from the previous session.

International oil prices continued their downward trend.

Supply concerns eased as the U.S. government announced a 60-day temporary waiver on sanctions and signs emerged of tanker traffic resuming in the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude futures for August delivery and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures for July delivery closed at 77.08 dollars and 73.21 dollars per barrel, down 1.05% and 0.88%, respectively.

International gold prices fell 1.6% to 4,122.69 dollars per ounce due to pressure from interest rate hike expectations.

Amid risk-aversion sentiment, Bitcoin traded at 62,310.38 dollars, down 3.21%.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)