Investor attention was drawn to a steep decline in South Korea’s stock market, where shares of major memory chip manufacturers came under intense pressure. The benchmark Kospi index recorded a sharp fall as investors sold holdings in semiconductor giants SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics, both of which posted double-digit losses during the session.
The weakness in chip stocks spilled over into global technology markets, raising concerns about the sustainability of the massive investments being made across the artificial intelligence ecosystem.
Market sentiment has become more cautious amid growing scrutiny of how AI expansion is being financed.
Reports suggesting deeper financial ties between leading AI companies and their technology partners have prompted questions over whether some of the industry’s growth is being supported by interconnected funding arrangements rather than end-user demand alone.
Adding to investor unease is the rapid progress being made by Chinese AI developers. The emergence of lower-cost alternatives has renewed debate over whether the billions of dollars being invested in data centres, advanced chips and AI infrastructure will generate the expected returns.
The focus is also turning to the US Federal Reserve, which begins its two-day policy meeting on Tuesday. While investors broadly expect policymakers to keep interest rates unchanged, uncertainty remains elevated as markets assess the central bank’s outlook on inflation and economic growth.
Meanwhile, Apple continued to reinforce its dominance among global technology companies. The iPhone maker recently overtook Nvidia to become the world’s most valuable listed company and has now crossed the $5 trillion market capitalisation milestone.