Global Markets React to Wall Street’s Drop, as Alibaba’s AI Investment Fuels Stock Surge

A ripple of uncertainty spread through global markets today as investors reacted to a drop on Wall Street, which saw major US indexes fall from their recent record highs. The decline on Tuesday, September 23, was prompted by cautious comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who suggested that stock prices were “fairly highly valued,” adding to existing worries about a softening job market and persistent inflation.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 were among the hardest hit, with the sell-off bringing a pause to the US market’s relentless rally that had been ongoing since April. The dip in US stocks set a cautious tone for trading in Asia and Europe.

However, a bright spot emerged from China, where tech powerhouse Alibaba saw its stock surge by as much as 9% on the news of a renewed and aggressive focus on artificial intelligence (AI). At its annual flagship technology conference, Alibaba’s CEO Eddie Wu announced that the company would increase its investment in AI infrastructure and development beyond a previously stated $50 billion target. The company also unveiled its largest AI model to date, the Qwen3-Max, further signaling its intent to dominate the booming AI sector.

This move by Alibaba provided a powerful counter-narrative to the global market’s mixed performance, underscoring the ongoing investor enthusiasm for AI-related companies. The company’s announcement, along with positive forecasts from other tech firms, served to buoy sentiment in the tech sector, even as other segments of the market grappled with macroeconomic concerns and the implications of the US Federal Reserve’s recent policies.