Stocks swing following latest AI-fuelled sell-off on Wall St

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Stocks swing following latest AI-fuelled sell-off on Wall St

ECONOMY 04.02.2026

Stocks swing following latest AI-fuelled sell-off on Wall St / Photo: © AFP

Stocks fluctuated Wednesday following another tech-fuelled sell-off on Wall Street, while precious metals continued their recovery on dip-buying following a two-day collapse.

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Oil prices also extended gains on a fresh pick-up in US-Iran tensions after an American jet shot down an Iranian drone in the Middle East, just as the two sides prepared to hold key nuclear talks.

Assets across the board have endured a volatile start to February owing to a surge in the dollar, geopolitical tensions and the possibility of another US government shutdown.

Concerns over artificial intelligence have also kept traders on their toes amid questions over the vast sums invested in the sector and warnings of a bubble that could pop at any time.

The latest flare-up came in New York, where markets were spooked by news that AI startup Anthropic -- which created the Claude chatbot -- had revealed a tool that could be used by firms to carry out legal work.

The announcement hit firms in the software, financial services and asset management industries. Downbeat sales projections from Advanced Micro Devices compounded the darker mood.

Tech firms around Asia sank, though broader markets flitted between gains and losses.

Shanghai, Sydney, Seoul, Singapore and Manila rose but Tokyo, Hong Kong, Jakarta and Wellington slipped. Taipei was flat.

The mixed day pointed to a return of stability after two days of sharp swings sparked by AI concerns and Donald Trump's hawkish pick to lead the Federal Reserve, which dampened interest rate cut bets.

Precious metals rose for a second day, after tanking on Friday and Monday as the US president's tapping of Kevin Warsh -- a former Fed governor -- sent the dollar surging.

The greenback had been taking a battering for most of last week on worries Trump was happy to have a weaker currency.

Gold was sitting just above $5,000 an ounce and silver around $87 -- both well off last week's record highs of $5,595 and $121 but up from the lows of $4,597 and $71 seen in the past two days.

"Investors and traders are dipping their toes in the waters after the clear-out of a lot of the froth and leveraged speculative positions," said Saxo Markets' Neil Wilson.

This "A) might give them confidence that perhaps the worst of the volatility is over; and B) prices had plunged so much so fast they think it's worth a go at these levels.

"A lot of people sitting on the sidelines for months feeling every day they'd missed their chance to get in will be part of this renewed wave of buying."

Oil prices rose around one percent after it emerged a US fighter jet had taken out an Iranian drone that approached an aircraft carrier Tuesday.

That was the second clash that day between the two in Middle Eastern waters, after Iranian forces attempted to detain a US-flagged tanker in the Strait of Hormuz.

The incidents come after Washington and Tehran agreed to talks despite Trump's repeated threat of military action against Iran -- and Iran's warning that it would respond with strikes on US vessels and bases.

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told Fox News that US envoy Steve Witkoff is still expected "to have conversations with the Iranians late this week".

Traders were cheered by news that Trump had signed into law a congressional spending bill to fund government agencies while buying more time for lawmakers to negotiate over the administration's controversial immigration crackdown.

Negotiations had broken down following the killing of two US citizens by federal agents in Minneapolis, the Minnesota city which has become the flashpoint for the Republican president's policies.

However, lawmakers now have just two weeks to negotiate a full-year Department for Homeland Security bill.

- Key figures at around 0230 GMT -

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.6 percent at 54,391.58 (break)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.4 percent at 26,722.61

Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 4,077.51

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1824 from $1.1829 on Tuesday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3702 from $1.3701

Dollar/yen: UP at 156.25 yen from 155.74 yen

Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.28 pence from 86.30 pence

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.0 percent at $63.84 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.9 percent at $67.93 per barrel

New York - Dow: DOWN 0.3 percent at 49,240.99 (close)

London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.3 percent at 10,314.59 (close)

W.Baxter--TNT

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The "Everlasting Battery" Inside Your Joints:UConn Professor's Self-Powered Healing Material just Got Acquired

A material that turns your own movement into medicine has just landed a corporate home. PetVivo Holdings (OTCQX: PETV), a veterinary biotech and biomedical device company focused on treating osteoarthritis in dogs and horses, has acquired PiezoBioMembrane (PBM) — a startup built around a biodegradable implant that generates electricity from the everyday force of a joint in motion, and uses that charge to help regrow cartilage from the inside out. The material is the invention of Thanh Nguyen, a professor of mechanical engineering in UConn's College of Engineering, who founded PBM in 2021 to advance new implementation methods for his work with piezoelectric materials — substances that convert mechanical force into electrical energy. These materials are typically ceramics: hard, brittle, and poorly suited for medical use. But Nguyen's lab developed new forms that are so , flexible, and biodegradable, breaking down naturally within the body over time. wound healing, The materials have already shown strong potential across a range of medical applications, including tissue regeneration, implanted force sensors, and targeted drug delivery in tumor treatment. How It Works biodegradable ultrasound for In the case of arthritis, Nguyen explains, the piezoelectric materials function as an off-the-shelf product that can be implanted or injected directly into the ailing joint — with no drugs, chemicals, or cells required. The everyday force exerted on the joint generates a small electrical charge, which helps regrow healthy cartilage, mimicking the body's natural use of electricity to regenerate tissue. "The body can be electrically stimulated to regrow," Nguyen says. PBM's materials "act like a battery — an everlasting battery that works whenever there is a force applied, and vanishes safely inside the body over time." PetVivo's Vision for the Acquisition PetVivo Holdings CEO John Lai expressed enthusiasm for the merger's potential to improve the lives of companion animals globally. "PBM has developed a compelling functional biomaterials platform with the potential to support the development of multiple medical device and therapeutic product lines across both human and animal health markets," Lai said in a press release. "By combining PBM's scientific innovation with PetVivo's product development capabilities, commercialization experience, regulatory expertise, and public company infrastructure, we believe we can accelerate theadvancement of technologies that may serve as the foundation for numerous future products and strategic opportunities." For Nguyen, the deal is a chance to scale technology that could eventually benefit both animals and people. "PetVivo is an animal health company, but they do have a big passion: pushing the technology towards clinical trials for human use," Nguyen says. "That aligned perfectly with my passion for developing technology that has an impact on human life. That is why I am excited about this merger, which facilitates my passion." A Track Record of Innovation Nguyen's research sits at the intersection of medicine, micro/nanotechnology, and biomaterials. His inventions have earned him publications in prominent scientific journals and media coverage from outlets including NPR. Nguyen founded PBM during the COVID-19 pandemic, a er realizing the material he had developed could be used to create an especially effective, biodegradable face mask — one where the mechanical force of breathing generated an electrical charge that provided an extra layer of protection against viruses. PBM is not Nguyen's only venture in the acquisition pipeline. His other startup, Single-Time Microneedles (STM), is also currently undergoing an acquisition process. STM has pioneered stable, efficient vaccine delivery technology in the form of an adhesive patch. shelfNguyen's focus on biodegradable materials has translated into a remarkably diverse range of medical applications. He has received five R01 grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) supporting research in cartilage regeneration, bone regeneration, HIV antibody delivery systems, and biodegradable ultrasound technology to boost the effectiveness of chemotherapy for brain cancer. "Whatever we are working on, we want to show that it works very well in vitro and in vivo," Nguyen says. "Then, when we are at the point of commercialization, we set up a startup or license the technology — or maybe team up with an industry partner." Thanh Nguyen is a professor of mechanical engineering in UConn's College of Engineering. (Courtesy of Thanh Nguyen

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The National Times - Stocks swing following latest AI-fuelled sell-off on Wall St