Global tech selloff deepens as enthusiasm for AI stocks wobbles

Michael Nagle/Bloomberg/Getty Images

Global technology stocks sold off sharply Thursday, as a growing list of worries, including rising borrowing costs and tougher competition from China, caused traders to sour on AI investments.

Nasdaq futures were down 1.1% shortly after 6.30 a E.T. The tech-heavy index posted its worst decline since July on Wednesday, as shares of companies involved in the AI buildout, including chipmakers, tumbled.

CoreWeave, a data center provider backed by Nvidia, fell 6% in premarket trading, after plunging 15.5% Wednesday. Oracle fell more than 2% premarket, having closed nearly 9% lower Wednesday. Intel, SpaceX and Nvidia were also poised to open sharply lower.

“Worries about the AI buildout, bubbly valuations, lower-than-expected earnings growth at leading US frontier labs, Chinese competition, inflation and rates sent investors running for the covers,” Neil Wilson, a strategist at investment bank Saxo wrote in a note. He pointed to the slowing pace of revenue growth at Anthropic and OpenAI as adding to investor concerns.

Multiple news outlets reported that Anthropic, at an investor presentation ahead of its planned IPO expected in the near future, announced its sales grew 45% to $17 billion last quarter. Growth had more than doubled in the second quarter.

Further hitting sentiment, C.C. Wei, the CEO of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world’s largest manufacturer of advanced chips, sounded a cautious note during an earnings call Thursday. He told analysts that rising component prices and macroeconomic uncertainty was challenging demand in some segments of the market.

The company’s shares finished 2% lower despite bumper earnings, contributing to a 3.5% decline in an index of Taiwan’s technology stocks.

South Korea’s Kospi led declines in Asia, finishing 7.6% lower on sharp drops in chipmakers SK Hynix (-11%) and Samsung Electronics (-9.5%). The scale of the decline triggered a circuit breaker, temporarily halting trading on the exchange – a frequent occurrence this year in a stock market dominated by just two stocks. Japan’s Nikkei finished 4.9% lower, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng down 1%.

An index of technology stocks in Europe fell 3% in early afternoon trade locally, with Dutch semiconductor manufacturer ASML down nearly 5%.

Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

AI stocks drop after hot inflation report bolsters bets for Fed rate hikes

The global retreat in technology stocks followed a sharp selloff overnight on Wall Street, after a strong US inflation print bolstered worries that rising interest rates will make it more expensive for companies to fund AI investments. Many AI companies are already heavily indebted.

“A slowdown in the AI infrastructure build out would imply a sharp slowdown in US growth expectations,” Mohit Kumar, chief European economist at Jefferies said in a note. The US is spending more on AI annually as a percentage of GDP than it did on building railways across the country in the 1800s, he noted.

AI stock valuations have been volatile throughout the year. The biggest hyperscalers – Anthropic and OpenAI – remain privately traded, so investors look for clues about AI demand elsewhere. One report that hints about slumping demand or higher-than-expected costs of building out AI infrastructure has frequently sent stocks on a rollercoaster ride.

But fears of a bubble suddenly popping have tended to be overblown.

“We expect the earnings season to justify that earnings and demand remain robust,” Kumar added. He cautioned, however, that Jefferies “would look to take some chips off the table” ahead of the midterms because a potential Democrat win in Congress “would be considered negative for the sector.”

Adding to market jitters is growing competitive pressure from China, after Chinese semiconductor CXMT announced progress on advanced memory chips, raising doubts about the potential profitability of companies in the US and South Korea.

Michael Nagle/Bloomberg/Getty Images

周四，全球科技股大幅抛售，越来越多的担忧因素，包括不断上升的借贷成本和来自中国的日益激烈的竞争，导致交易员对人工智能投资失去信心。

美国东部时间 6:30 刚过，纳斯达克期货下跌 1.1%。周三，科技股为主的纳斯达克指数创下自 7 月以来最大跌幅，原因是参与人工智能建设的公司（包括芯片制造商）的股票暴跌。

由英伟达支持的数据中心提供商CoreWeave在盘前交易中下跌6%，此前该股周三暴跌15.5%。甲骨文(Oracle)盘前下跌超过2%，周三收盘下跌近9%。英特尔(Intel)、SpaceX和英伟达(Nvidia)的股价也预计将大幅低开。

盛宝银行策略师尼尔·威尔逊在一份报告中写道：“人工智能建设的担忧、估值泡沫、美国领先前沿实验室低于预期的盈利增长、中国竞争、通货膨胀和利率等因素，令投资者纷纷抛售股票。”他指出，Anthropic和OpenAI营收增长放缓也加剧了投资者的担忧。

多家新闻媒体报道称，Anthropic公司在近期计划进行IPO的投资者推介会上宣布，其上季度销售额增长45%，达到170亿美元。第二季度的增长率更是超过了一倍。

周四，全球最大的芯片制造商台积电（TSMC）首席执行官魏志强在财报电话会议上发表谨慎言论，进一步打击了市场情绪。他告诉分析师，元器件价格上涨和宏观经济的不确定性正在挑战部分市场领域的需求。

尽管公司盈利丰厚，但其股价仍下跌 2%，导致台湾科技股指数下跌 3.5%。

韩国综合股价指数（KOSPI）领跌亚洲股市，收跌7.6%，主要原因是芯片制造商SK海力士（-11%）和三星电子（-9.5%）股价大幅下跌。跌幅之大触发了熔断机制，交易所暂时停止交易——今年以来，在仅由两家公司主导的韩国股市中，熔断机制已频繁出现。日本日经指数收跌4.9%，香港恒生指数下跌1%。

欧洲科技股指数在当地时间午后交易中下跌 3%，其中荷兰半导体制造商 ASML 股价下跌近 5%。

Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

通胀报告走高，市场预期美联储加息，人工智能类股应声下跌。

全球科技股回落，此前华尔街隔夜遭遇大幅抛售。强劲的美国通胀数据加剧了人们对利率上升将增加企业人工智能投资成本的担忧。许多人工智能公司已经负债累累。

杰富瑞首席欧洲经济学家莫希特·库马尔在一份报告中指出：“人工智能基础设施建设放缓将意味着美国经济增长预期大幅下降。”他还指出，美国目前每年在人工智能领域的支出占GDP的比例，已经超过了19世纪用于修建全国铁路的支出。

今年以来，人工智能股票的估值一直波动不定。最大的两家超大规模数据中心提供商——Anthropic 和 OpenAI——仍为非上市公司，因此投资者会从其他方面寻找人工智能需求的线索。任何暗示需求下滑或人工智能基础设施建设成本高于预期的报告，都常常会引发股价的剧烈波动。

但人们对泡沫突然破裂的担忧往往被夸大了。

库马尔补充道：“我们预计财报季将证实盈利和需求依然强劲。”但他同时提醒，杰富瑞将在中期选举前“考虑减持部分仓位”，因为民主党若在国会获胜“将对该行业产生负面影响”。

加剧市场紧张情绪的是来自中国的日益增长的竞争压力。中国半导体公司CXMT宣布在先进存储芯片方面取得进展，这引发了人们对美国和韩国公司潜在盈利能力的怀疑。