Asian stocks edge higher despite Alphabet slump reviving AI spending concerns; US Fed holds rates - CNBC TV18

Asian equities advanced in early trade even as a slump in Alphabet shares revived concerns about the sustainability of heavy AI capital spending, while the US Federal Reserve held interest rates steady. The divergence reflects a split between regional risk appetite, which is being supported by the Fed's unchanged policy stance and the resulting stability in dollar funding conditions, and sector-specific repricing in US mega-cap technology, where investors are questioning the return on large-scale AI infrastructure outlays. Alphabet's decline transmits to the broader AI complex, including semiconductor and cloud-exposed names, as the market reassesses whether elevated capex guidance will translate into near-term revenue growth. The US dollar is sensitive to the rate hold, since unchanged policy preserves the existing rate differential against regional peers and limits immediate pressure on the currency. Traders will watch the Fed chair's press conference commentary on the rate path and the next US inflation print for signals on whether policy easing remains on the table.

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