- Shares of major chip firms in the US and Asia fell sharply due to deepening sell-off in AI-related stocks.
- South Korea's Kospi index slid by 8%, triggering a temporary trading halt, and closed 10.8% lower, led by tech firms like Samsung and SK Hynix.
- Nvidia's 5% drop on Monday ceded its position as world's most valuable listed company to Apple.
- Asian markets, particularly South Korea and Japan, experienced volatile trading due to high retail investor activity and debt-fueled stock purchases.
- Nvidia's decline was partly triggered by reports of talks to invest $250bn in OpenAI for a massive data-center project.
- Apple overtook Nvidia as the most valuable company, as it is not heavily involved in AI spending, attracting investors concerned about rival expenditures.
- Investors worry about AI spending returns and increasing competition from China, as seen with CXMT's 470% IPO surge in Shanghai.
- European markets, less exposed to AI, were largely unaffected, with indices like FTSE 100 and Dax 40 rising slightly.