Oil Prices Surge as Middle East Shipping Attacks Threaten Supply 
ECB Rate Hike in Focus as Oil Tops $100 
Global Central Banks Brace for More Rate Hikes as Inflation Risks Rise 
US Treasury Yields Near 5% as Oil Fuels Inflation Fears 
Fitch Eyes Japan Budget for Fiscal Discipline 
Asian Currencies Steady as Yen Holds Firm, Oil Tops $100 
Asian Tech Stocks Slide as AI Concerns and Rising Bond Yields Hit Chipmakers 
Asian Currencies Subdued as Yen Weakens Ahead of Fed, BOJ Decisions 
Gulf Ministers to Meet Iran in Oman Over Hormuz Shipping Deal 
Oil Prices Surge as Houthi Attacks Deepen Hormuz Supply Fears 
EUR/USD Eyes 1.17 as Fed Decision Could Weigh on Dollar 
Saudi Oil Exports Face 4% Global Supply Threat as Pipeline Remains Shut 
Central Banks Could Buy 20,000 Tonnes of Gold: BofA 
Norway Core Inflation Rises to 3% in August 
Gold Prices Steady as Hot PPI Boosts Fed Rate Hike Bets 
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Asian stocks declined on Monday as concerns over a potential slowdown in artificial intelligence development pressured technology shares, while oil prices above $100 a barrel fueled inflation fears and expectations for tighter monetary policy.
Nasdaq 100 futures dropped 1.3%, S&P 500 futures fell 0.5%, and the MSCI Asia Pacific Index lost about 0.5%. Sentiment weakened after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei urged AI companies to slow development of their most advanced models and introduce stronger safeguards, including independent third-party evaluations.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman supported the proposal, while xAI chief Elon Musk said Amodei was right. President Donald Trump pushed back against the concerns, emphasizing the importance of maintaining U.S. leadership in AI amid intense competition with China.
The debate raised questions about whether slower AI development could reduce corporate technology spending and pressure earnings expectations across the semiconductor and AI supply chain.
South Korea’s KOSPI fell 2.5%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 dropped 1%. SK Hynix declined 5%, Samsung Electronics lost 2.9%, Kioxia plunged 6.8%, and SoftBank Group fell as much as 13% after Altman said OpenAI would not go public this year. Chinese AI developer Z.AI sank 7.5% after announcing a roughly $5 billion fundraising through discounted shares and convertible bonds.
Meanwhile, Brent crude climbed 2.7% to $107.51 a barrel after Saudi Arabia shut a key oil pipeline following drone attacks and planned talks between Iran and Gulf states were postponed. Continued tensions around the Strait of Hormuz have increased concerns about global energy supplies and persistent inflation.
Higher oil prices are also complicating the Federal Reserve’s policy outlook. Swap markets now indicate a nearly 90% probability of a rate hike on Wednesday.
Investors are also awaiting monetary policy decisions from the Bank of England and Bank of Japan this week. Elsewhere, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was little changed, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.4%, China’s CSI 300 slipped 0.3%, and the Shanghai Composite rose 0.2%.
