Nasdaq slides to near three-month low as AI spending fears grip tech earnings

What happened

The Nasdaq dropped more than 2% to reach a near three-month low after results from Amazon and Intel intensified investor concerns about the scale of spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure.

According to the reports, the slide leaves the index facing a wipeout of about $2 trillion in value over the month, with AI spending fears cited as the central driver of the move in technology shares.

Why it matters

Large technology companies carry heavy weight in US equity indices, so questions about the returns on their capital spending can move the whole benchmark rather than just individual shares. Earnings season is when those spending plans are disclosed and reassessed, which can concentrate volatility around a handful of reporting dates.

Sharp index moves also tend to spill beyond equities. Risk sentiment feeds into the dollar through demand for defensive assets, into gold as a traditional hedge, and into crypto, which has often traded in sympathy with high-growth technology exposure. Clients holding index, FX, metals or crypto positions can therefore see linked swings when tech leadership is questioned.

What to watch

Attention stays on the remaining technology earnings and on any further detail from companies such as Amazon and Intel on the pace and funding of AI-related capital spending, as flagged in the reports behind this week's decline.