In a series of incidents, hackers targeted inadequately protected digital billboards in Egypt, Malaysia, and Brazil, displaying explicit adult material.
OpenAI is seeking to change the term “data centres” to one that better represents their extensive scale, infrastructure, and skilled workforce.
Most Asian stock markets showed gains, accompanied by positive futures for US equities, as investor confidence stabilised following last week’s declines in technology stocks. Oil prices experienced a downward trend.
Benchmark indices in South Korea and Hong Kong rose, while Australia saw a decline, contributing to a 0.1% increase in the MSCI Asia Pacific Index.
This followed a notably poor performance on Friday where the Nasdaq 100 Index dropped by 3.5%, marking its most significant decline since June, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell by 7.2%.
On Monday, futures for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 increased by at least 0.4%, indicating a possible upswing when US cash markets reopen.
Chinese stocks experienced gains after reports emerged indicating that financial regulators planned to meet banks and securities firms to discuss supportive measures for the capital market, suggesting a renewed effort by authorities to address the current downturn.
Bitcoin experienced an upward trend for the third consecutive day following last week’s downturn, which was triggered by a major hack at Binance Holdings that raised concerns within the cryptocurrency sector.
“Asian shares recovered some of the losses as buying interest returned to some of the technology stocks,” noted Chaltan Wang, a portfolio manager at HashKey Capital.
“The key question is whether we are seeing a temporary correction in the very popular technology trade, or maybe the beginning of a reassessment of all these AI-related plays.”
The selloff in US stocks last Friday indicated waning investor tolerance for technology firms whose primary businesses are slowing while artificial intelligence investments continue to expand.
Reports from Alphabet and Amazon.com last week sparked worries that AI developments could be undermining the businesses supporting those investments.
Market participants are preparing for heightened volatility, particularly with the US midterm elections approaching this week and Nvidia’s earnings report scheduled for later in November. Nevertheless, some market analysts believe the downturn may present a buying opportunity.
Mike Wilson, chief equity strategist at Morgan Stanley in New York, stated, “There are a few clearing events ahead that could temporarily push stocks lower and create an opportunity for investors to add exposure.”
China’s benchmark CSI 300 Index saw a 1.3% increase, bouncing back from a 2.9% drop the previous week. The tech-focused Star 50 Index climbed by 3%.
Chinese media outlet Cailian reported that all three significant financial regulatory bodies in China— the People’s Bank of China, the National Financial Regulatory Administration, and the China Securities Regulatory Commission— will meet with major banks to discuss optimizing lending initiatives to bolster stock buybacks.
Shares of Kioxia Holdings dropped as much as 17% in Tokyo, following the Japanese memory manufacturer’s cautious outlook, which raised concerns about a potential slowdown in growth driven by AI innovations.
The US dollar displayed varied performance against its Group-of-10 counterparts while Treasuries remained mostly stable as traders focused on the upcoming midterm elections.
“The dollar remains caught between AI and oil,” remarked Moh Siong Sim, a foreign-exchange strategist at OCBC Bank Singapore.
“A modest rebound in Nasdaq futures offers some relief, while softer oil eases inflation concerns. The November 3 midterms add another risk. We remain constructive on the US dollar, but risks are becoming more two-sided.”
The decline in stocks last week was marked by a significant increase in volatility after disappointing earnings from major technology firms intensified apprehensions about the sustainability of the AI-driven market rally.
The Cboe Volatility Index reached its highest intraday level since April, with a corresponding increase in demand for put options as investors sought protection against potential losses. These movements indicated mounting market stress.
However, these metrics remain substantially lower than the peaks observed in March, following strikes by the US and Israel on Iran.
“This looks more like a bullish rotation with a derating at its core than the beginning of a broad market deterioration,” stated Florian Ielpo, head of macro research at Lombard Odier Investment Management.
Hackers hack billboards and display adult content: Hackers broadcast sexually explicit content on digital billboards in Egypt, Malaysia, and Brazil. There are also unconfirmed reports of similar incidents in Iraq and China. The group behind the attacks said it exploited poorly secured software controlling thousands of Internet-connected displays. Authorities shut down affected screens and launched investigations.
OpenAI wants to rename data centres: OpenAI is pushing to rebrand AI data centres as “compute campuses”. It argues that the term better reflects their scale, infrastructure, and skilled workforce. The push comes amid growing controversy over data centres and efforts to improve public perceptions of AI infrastructure.
Binance opens withdrawals after $6.3 billion (R105 billion) hack: Binance has started reopening withdrawals in phases after hackers made off with $6.3 billion (R105 billion) in cryptocurrency. The exchange has covered 95% of the stolen assets and said it would absorb losses without passing them on to users. It processed $4.6 billion (R76.7 billion) in withdrawals and $1 billion (R16.7 billion) in deposits over a nine-and-a-half-hour period.
AI turning amateurs into super-hackers: A 26-year-old man allegedly used chatbots to hack at least 9 South Korean banks, exposing tens of thousands of customers’ financial data in the process. According to CrowdStrike, AI tools are making sophisticated cyberattacks accessible to inexperienced hackers.
Apple’s new HomeView could double as a security camera: Apple’s HomeView smart display could acquire home security camera functionality, references in its software suggest. The camera could support motion detection, live streaming, and recording, with alerts and settings that can be adjusted whether household members are at home or away.
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