Big tech sell-off as ‘blue wave’ hits the US
The blue wave at the US ballot box has quickly been replaced by a sea of red on investors’ screens amid fears of growing regulations.
Stuart Clark, Portfolio Manager at Quilter, notes that the immediate catalyst appears to be concerns around tougher AI regulation, covering both the models themselves and the vast data centre infrastructure required to support them.
“The scale of the falls in some of the market’s biggest names has been striking. But it also highlights the concentration risk that has built up in US equity markets,” he said.
“With a relatively small number of technology and semiconductor stocks now carrying so much weight, weakness in those names quickly translates into sizeable falls for the Nasdaq and S&P 500.”
Importantly for investors, this isn’t a story of everything falling together, Clark said.
“Healthcare and consumer staples have performed strongly over the past month and proved more resilient during the latest bout of volatility.
“It is a useful reminder of why diversification matters, particularly after a period when investors could have been forgiven for thinking owning the largest US technology companies was all they needed.”
Clark noted that the weakness has inevitably spread to other technology-heavy markets around the world, with Asian equities particularly exposed, while the UK market should be relatively insulated given its much lower weighting to technology.
“Meanwhile, energy prices have edged higher as investors continue to grapple with uncertainty around Iran and what comes next.
“Add that geopolitical backdrop to concerns over AI regulation and extremely concentrated equity markets, and there is plenty for investors to digest. After such a strong run for technology, some volatility should perhaps come as little surprise.”
