AI companies and chipmakers lose more than $1 trillion amid concerns over financing

Technology stocks continued to decline on international markets on Thursday, while the 20 most valuable companies in artificial intelligence and semiconductors collectively lost more than $1 trillion in market capitalization since the start of the week. Investors are concerned about the rising costs of financing AI infrastructure and intensifying competition in the chip industry.

On Wall Street, Nvidia fell by approximately 2%, while AMD and Intel each lost 4%. Dell Technologies shares declined by 8%, while CoreWeave, Nebius and IREN recorded drops of up to 8%. The declines also affected Asian markets: SK Hynix lost more than 10%, Samsung Electronics 8.73%, and Advantest nearly 14%. In Europe, ASML fell 5.2%, Infineon 8.2%, and ASM International 8.6%.

The pressure stems mainly from rising U.S. Treasury yields, which exceeded 5%, and the prospect of further interest-rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. Higher borrowing costs threaten the financing of data centers and AI projects valued at hundreds of billions of dollars.

Investors are also monitoring Chinese competition, as well as the risk of an oversupply of memory chips starting in 2029. However, analysts say demand for artificial intelligence remains strong, and the current correction reflects financing concerns more than a fundamental deterioration of the market.