Global stock markets continued their upward trend this week as investors maintain a strong belief in the future prospects of technology companies driving the artificial intelligence (AI) boom. The optimism propelled major U.S. indexes higher on Tuesday, with the tech-focused Nasdaq Composite leading the gains.

The Nasdaq Composite saw an increase of 1.18 percent. The broader S&P 500 index rose by 0.6 percent, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average experienced a more modest gain of 0.03 percent. Among the prominent "Magnificent Seven" tech stocks, several posted gains, with Tesla jumping 4.04 percent. Amazon followed with a 1.61 percent increase, while Apple and Alphabet added 0.93 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively.

Nvidia, currently the world's most valuable public company, saw its stock rise by nearly 1 percent following news of a $3 billion investment in Meta's equity offering. Meta's stock, however, dipped 1.64 percent, and Microsoft saw a slight decline of 0.24 percent. Other significant tech players like Advanced Micro Devices, Broadcom, and Intel also registered notable gains, increasing by 5.45 percent, 4 percent, and 3.61 percent respectively.

This positive momentum carried over into Asian markets on Wednesday. Stock exchanges in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Australia all reported gains. The KOSPI index in Seoul was a standout performer, surging 5.84 percent by 03:00 GMT. This rally was significantly boosted by South Korea's SK Hynix, a leading memory chip manufacturer, which announced exceptional third-quarter results. The company's operating profit skyrocketed by approximately 630 percent year-on-year, reaching 83.33 trillion won ($62.8 billion). SK Hynix shares traded in South Korea surged over 8 percent in response.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index climbed 1.26 percent, and the TAIEX in Taipei rose by 1.32 percent. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney recorded a more modest gain of 0.11 percent. Investors are now closely awaiting upcoming earnings reports from other major technology firms, seeking to assess the return on their substantial investments in AI infrastructure.

Upcoming earnings reports from key tech companies, including Microsoft and Alphabet on Wednesday, Amazon on Thursday, and Apple on Monday, are expected to provide further insights into the sector's performance. The anticipation surrounding these reports highlights the market's focus on the financial viability of AI initiatives.

Further underscoring the intense interest in AI, AI giant Anthropic filed paperwork for its anticipated initial public offering (IPO) on Monday. The company reported a net loss of $80.7 billion in the first half of 2026, against revenues of $16.3 billion, illustrating the high costs associated with developing advanced AI capabilities.

This period of significant investment in AI, with firms collectively pouring hundreds of billions into infrastructure, has sparked discussions about the potential for a speculative market bubble, drawing comparisons to the dot-com crash of the early 2000s. Projections from Gartner, a technology insights firm, forecast global AI investment to reach $2.7 trillion in 2026 and $3.6 trillion in 2027, indicating the scale of the ongoing financial commitment to the technology.