A sharp selloff in technology stocks rippled across global markets this week, with chipmakers and AI-linked names leading the decline. According to Bloomberg, stocks were hit by a broad tech selloff as Korean shares plunged. The Kospi — described by Business Insider as one of the world's hottest equity markets this year — fell about 10% and triggered a circuit-breaker on Tuesday, with the pain spreading toward the US.
The weakness reached US futures. The Economic Times reported that Nasdaq futures sank more than 2% amid worries over AI spending and expectations of a more hawkish Federal Reserve. Yahoo Finance reported that Nvidia, Micron and Alphabet led the slide as the "AI trade" cooled, and the Motley Fool noted AI chip stocks were caught in the broad sell-off.
SpaceX featured prominently in the downturn. NBC News reported the global tech sell-off intensified, led by a SpaceX slide, while 24/7 Wall St. described what it called the biggest IPO in history beginning to unravel. An MSN report framed the SpaceX tumble as just the tip of the sector's troubles, citing Alphabet feeling the sting of AI talent competition and a sell-off in memory-chip stocks.
The selloff was not limited to the US and Asia-Pacific. The Financial Express reported India's markets fell, with the Nifty IT Index down 2% and the broader Nifty and Sensex each sliding about 1%.
Some strategists are drawing uneasy comparisons to the past. Investor's Business Daily reported that questions over whether AI stocks are in a bubble have surfaced, with comparisons to 1999.
Why it matters: AI-linked tech has powered much of the recent market's gains, so a synchronized global pullback signals that investor confidence in the AI boom may be wobbling.