AI supplier stocks were sold off on Tuesday, the strongest signal yet of a shift in market sentiment. Growing concerns are that rising interest rates could disrupt the AI spending spree. South Korean chip stocks fell for the fifth straight session on Tuesday, with the decline accelerating sharply, the KOSPI index dropping over 6%. Japanese memory chip maker Kioxia fell 13%, leading the decline in AI-related stocks. This is the worst drop since the similar stock crash at the end of July.
Damian Boy, portfolio strategist at Wilson Asset Management, said, "The most important change is not just rising bond yields, but also bond volatility, which is beginning to transmit to the pricing of various assets."
"In many ways, the current situation is unsettling. Perhaps AI capital spending will cool down slightly, or perhaps some players will become casualties." Furthermore, on Monday, BlackRock's research division downgraded its outlook for US stocks to neutral, citing "potential volatility from AI development," and turned bullish on short-term US Treasuries. The International Monetary Fund also warned in its latest Financial Stability Report on Tuesday that "the consequences of an AI pullback could be global." The IMF acknowledged AI's contribution to growth, but stated that mounting evidence suggests that capacity investment and economic returns may not be as significant as expected.
