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Another AI related stock sell-off effected most major indexes last week with the S&P, FTSE, Nikkei and Shanghai Stock Exchange all finishing lower.

The head of Alphabet, Sundar Pichai, added to worries about the growth of AI investment. During an interview with the BBC on Tuesday saying there is some “irrationality” in the AI boom, and that, if the bubble bursts, “no company is going to be immune, including us”.

The next day, the world’s largest company, Nvidia, released their long-awaited earnings report for Q3. Markets initially reacted positively to the press release headlines…

While the concept of custom MPS is gaining traction, many advisers worry about what this means on a practical basis. Are you just adding risk without control? Where do responsibilities start and finish? Tony Hicks demystifies the process in part two of his series on custom portfolios.

On Monday morning, markets woke up to the news that seven democrats and one independent had voted to back the latest Republican deal to reopen the US government and end the longest ever US shutdown.

Trump formally signed a bill to end the shutdown on Wednesday. Market reaction was mixed as US equities traded lower over concerns about how long it will take for things to return to normal…

Global markets continued to rally in October. They extended gains over the three-month period despite some potential obstacles including the first US government shutdown since December 2018, uncertainties over inflation and tariffs, and worries about an AI stock bubble. Global equities posted gains of 5.5% over the month with strong results across both developed and emerging markets.

US markets closed nearly 2% down for the week after concerns over valuations of AI & Mag 7 stocks came to a head. Over $500bn was wiped off the value of AI chipmakers, with the bosses of Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley speaking of fears about an imminent correction. The sustained US Government shutdown, nearing the record for the longest ever, added to these pains, with increased instability and uncertainty in US markets. UK and European markets also suffered from the sell-off, with UK markets perhaps struggling with the uncertainty of the upcoming budget.

Recently there’s been a lot of commentary on a potential bubble in AI. Some suggest challenges lie ahead for those exposed to US equity, where elevated valuations are concentrated in AI-related stocks. Others say that investing is worthwhile to fuel innovation in a revolutionary technology. While discussions around a bubble are important, one thing that’s missing is a reminder about investing basics when it comes to assessing US exposure. Several factors suggest being underweight in the US is sensible: the nature of current valuations, underlying economic conditions and other metrics that indicate the AI narrative is largely driven by speculation…