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September 14, 2026 - 02:52
5 minutes
(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks and US equity-index futures retreated after major artificial intelligence companies called for a slowdown in the technology’s development, raising concerns about a sector that has powered this year’s rally. Oil rose.MSCI’s Asia Pacific equities index dropped 0.5%, with chipmakers SK Hynix Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. down more than 3%, while SoftBank Group Corp. slumped over 12% in Tokyo. The Kospi Index — a key barometer of AI investments — fell 2.8%.Futures on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 Index declined over 1% and contracts for the S&P 500 Index fell 0.6%.Meanwhile, Brent crude rose 3% to $107.75 a barrel after Saudi Arabia shut a key oil pipeline following drone attacks and a planned meeting between Iran and Gulf states was postponed.Treasuries opened higher Monday after last week’s selloff pushed the benchmark 10-year yield closer to 5%, as hotter-than-expected US inflation strengthened bets the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates this week. Swap traders now see a near 90% chance the US central bank will raise its key interest rate on Wednesday.South Korean and Japanese chip and technology companies — seen as the picks and shovels of the AI boom — will be in focus as investors assess whether the weekend’s warnings may translate into slower corporate spending and challenge earnings expectations across the supply chain. The scrutiny kicks off a pivotal week for traders, with a Fed meeting ahead and higher oil prices reviving inflation concerns and keeping borrowing costs elevated.“Two unwelcome headwinds collide,” said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst for KCM Trade. “Warnings that AI development needs to slow down, combined with another leg higher in oil prices after the Saudi East-West pipeline closure, is a difficult mix for risk assets. The sight of the 10-year Treasury yield on the doorstep of the 5% level is another nervous sign for stocks.”Anthropic PBC Chief Executive Officer Dario Amodei said Saturday that the company would introduce additional safeguards, including independent third-party evaluations, and urged the broader industry to slow the development of its most advanced models. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman backed the proposal, while xAI’s Elon Musk said “Dario is right.”US President Donald Trump downplayed the growing alarm over AI risks with questions arising over how committed industry leaders will be to slowing development of their most advanced — and lucrative — models amid intense competition from Chinese rivals.The debate adds to scrutiny of the billions being poured into AI and whether earnings can justify soaring infrastructure costs. High-valuation shares remain vulnerable to signs of weaker returns or slower spending, though some investors expect any pullback to be short-lived as demand for computing infrastructure remains strong.“Until any need for slowing in development translates into capex guidance cuts or delayed model releases, this is likely a sentiment driver not a valuation or earnings driver,” said Kerry Craig, a global market strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management.In other corners of the market, gold slipped 0.2% to about $4,340 an ounce. The yield on the 10-year Treasury slipped one basis point to 4.96% with the key focus this week on the Fed, which is due to announce its decision Wednesday.Three decisions, starting with the Fed and followed on successive days by policymakers in the UK and Japan, could reshape the global monetary policy outlook for the rest of 2026 and beyond.With oil emphatically above $100 a barrel again and the Middle East war apparently reigniting, any hope among policymakers for a respite in global price pressures seems faint for now.“September’s FOMC is getting very live now at 90% priced in for a hike,” said Martin Whetton, head of financial markets strategy at Westpac Banking Corp. “Treasuries finished higher in yield for the most part on Friday after the CPI print, and will continue to set the tone for fixed income markets in Asia today.”Corporate Highlights:Anthropic PBC has picked Nasdaq as its listing venue ahead of a potential record-setting initial public offering, according to a person familiar with the matter. OpenAI won’t go public in this year as the artificial intelligence company focuses on addressing safety-related concerns around the technology, Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman told Fortune in an interview. Some of the main moves in markets:StocksS&P 500 futures fell 0.5% as of 9:44 a.m. Tokyo time Hang Seng futures were little changed Japan’s Topix rose 0.4% Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was little changed Euro Stoxx 50 futures fell 0.4% CurrenciesThe Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro fell 0.1% to $1.1586 The Japanese yen was little changed at 153.70 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 6.7095 per dollar The Australian dollar fell 0.3% to $0.7145 CryptocurrenciesBitcoin fell 0.7% to $76,758.73 Ether fell 1.2% to $2,481.83 BondsThe yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.96% Japan’s 10-year yield was unchanged at 2.980% Australia’s 10-year yield declined two basis points to 5.35% CommoditiesWest Texas Intermediate crude rose 2.7% to $102.80 a barrel Spot gold fell 0.2% to $4,338.57 an ounce This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.–With assistance from Ruth Carson, Winnie Hsu and Carmeli Argana.©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
