Tech giants' market cap falls on AI doubts, high rates; Alphabet, Tesla gain

WASHINGTON: The market capitalisation of top technology giants fell sharply in April, pressured by diminishing enthusiasm for artificial intelligence and a scaling back of expectations for central bank interest rate cuts.

Microsoft's market value plummeted by $232.5 billion, or 7.4%, ending the month at $2.89 trillion. Meta Platforms Inc also suffered a drop of $146.8 billion, or 11.9%, ending at $1.09 trillion, following a lower-than-expected revenue forecast and rising expenses associated with burgeoning AI costs.

Nvidia Corp's market cap fell 4.4% to $2.16 trillion, driven by diminishing AI optimism and concerns over slowing revenue growth from competitor chipmakers, with its stock further declining on Wednesday following weak guidance from rival Advanced Micro Devices.

European luxury conglomerate LVMH saw its market cap decline by about 8% to $415.1 billion as its first-quarter sales growth slowed to 3%, with higher prices deterring consumer purchases of its high-end products.

Conversely, Alphabet Inc saw its market cap surge 7.3% to $2.02 trillion, buoyed by the announcement of its first-ever dividend, a $70 billion stock buyback, and first-quarter earnings that exceeded expectations.

Electric car maker Tesla Inc saw its market value increase by 4.4% to $584.4 billion, boosted by the removal of regulatory barriers in China that had previously hindered the rollout of its autonomous driving technology.