AI Fears Trigger Global Market Sell-Off: Bitcoin Drops 2.7% to $63,200
Global markets took a hit on Tuesday as fears about artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure spending sparked a wave of selling across various sectors. Bitcoin dropped 2.7% to around $63,200 after the U.S. market close, with other cryptocurrencies like Ether and XRP also declining.
The sell-off was not limited to crypto markets, however. Asian tech stocks, including Samsung and SK Hynix, plummeted as investors became increasingly uncertain about the sustainability of AI infrastructure growth. These companies are among the world's largest suppliers of high-bandwidth memory chips used in AI servers, making their shares highly sensitive to changes in expectations for U.S. hyperscaler spending.
Nvidia also fell around 5% on Monday after its AI-related financing commitments surpassed $750 billion, raising questions about the return on investment justifying the scale of the bet. The Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting, which began on Tuesday with a rate decision expected Wednesday, adds to the market uncertainty.