Global stock markets rise as investors continue to bet on AI | Financial Markets News
Global Markets Rally on Tech Optimism
Published: October 28, 2026
Global stock markets experienced significant gains as investors showed renewed confidence in the technology sector, particularly amid the ongoing artificial intelligence (AI) boom.
In the United States, all three major stock indexes rose on Tuesday, with the Nasdaq Composite leading the gains at an increase of 1.18 percent. The benchmark S&P 500 advanced 0.6 percent, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average posted a modest gain of 0.03 percent.
Among the so-called “Magnificent Seven” tech stocks, five saw increases, with Tesla leading at a rise of 4.04 percent. Amazon increased by 1.61 percent, followed by Apple and Alphabet, which rose by 0.93 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively. Nvidia, the highest-valued public company globally, saw an uptick of nearly 1 percent after announcing a $3 billion investment in Meta’s equity offering. Meanwhile, Meta’s stock fell by 1.64 percent, and Microsoft decreased by 0.24 percent. Notably, Advanced Micro Devices, Broadcom, and Intel reported gains of 5.45 percent, 4 percent, and 3.61 percent, respectively.
Asia Pacific Markets Surge
The positive trend extended to Asia Pacific markets on Wednesday, with stock exchanges in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Australia all reporting gains. The KOSPI index in Seoul led the way, surging 5.84 percent as of 03:00 GMT. This uptick followed impressive third-quarter results from South Korea’s SK Hynix, a leading memory chip manufacturer, which reported a staggering 630 percent increase in operating profit year-on-year, amounting to 83.33 trillion won (approximately $62.8 billion). Following this announcement, SK Hynix shares rose by more than 8 percent.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index climbed 1.26 percent, while the TAIEX in Taipei saw an increase of 1.32 percent. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney posted a slight gain of 0.11 percent. Investors are closely monitoring upcoming earnings reports from major technology firms to assess the potential returns on significant investments in AI technology. Microsoft and Alphabet are set to report their latest results on Wednesday, followed by Amazon on Thursday and Apple on Monday.
Also in the tech sector, AI company Anthropic recently filed paperwork for an anticipated initial public offering, disclosing a net loss of $80.7 billion in the first half of 2026 on revenues of $16.3 billion. The substantial investments by tech firms into AI infrastructure have sparked discussions about the possibility of a speculative market bubble reminiscent of the dot-com crash in 2000. According to Gartner, a technology insights company, global AI investment is projected to reach $2.7 trillion in 2026 and $3.6 trillion in 2027.
Amid ongoing geopolitical tensions, oil prices saw a rise of approximately 1 percent in early trading on Wednesday. This increase follows elevated prices that have persisted since the onset of the US-Israel conflict with Iran, further exacerbated by hostilities between Saudi Arabia and Iran-aligned Houthi forces in Yemen. Brent crude futures, the global benchmark, are currently priced around $115 a barrel, reflecting a 59 percent increase since the conflict began.
