Evening digest: Moonshot causes AI selloff, Apple retakes top market cap crown

On Friday, Chinese AI startup Moonshot sparked a fresh selloff in global semiconductor stocks after unveiling its latest Kimi K3 model.

Apple reclaimed its position as the world's most valuable publicly traded company briefly before Nvidia went back to the top place.  

Meanwhile, oil prices surged as the US and Iran intensified military attacks across the Middle East, while gold rebounded on Friday despite remaining on track for its biggest weekly loss in six weeks.

Moonshot's new AI model causes global stock market selloff

A surprise breakthrough from Chinese AI startup Moonshot rattled global markets on Friday after the company unveiled its new Kimi K3 artificial intelligence model.

The development raised fresh concerns about the sustainability of AI spending and demand for advanced semiconductors.

Moonshot said Kimi K3 rivals leading models from OpenAI and Anthropic, prompting investors to compare the launch with last year's "DeepSeek moment."

The announcement weighed heavily on AI and semiconductor stocks worldwide. 

PHLX Semiconductor index fell 1.19% while the VanEck Semiconductor ETF declined 2%. 

SoftBank Group, widely viewed as a proxy for OpenAI, plunged 9% in Tokyo. Shares of Chinese AI companies also declined sharply, with Z.AI falling 28% and MiniMax dropping 16%.

Others argued the development reflected China's rapid progress rather than a sudden disruption.

Artificial Analysis ranked Kimi K3 ahead of Anthropic's Opus 4.8 on certain frontier benchmarks, making it the first Chinese open-weight model to achieve that milestone.

Apple briefly becomes world's most valuable company again

Apple reclaimed its position as the world's most valuable publicly traded company after its market capitalization climbed to approximately $4.88 trillion, overtaking Nvidia's roughly $4.84 trillion valuation.

Apple shares rose to a record high of $334.99, while Nvidia fell more than 3% during Friday's session.

However, Nvidia clawed back the title after it reduced its intraday losses to 2%. 

The companies have followed different trajectories in 2026. 

Apple has gained about 22% this year as investors responded positively to its artificial intelligence strategy and relatively modest capital spending model, while Nvidia has risen roughly 7%.

The milestone comes as Apple continues expanding its AI strategy following the rollout of its revamped Siri platform and broader Apple Intelligence initiatives.

HSBC upgraded Apple to Buy from Hold and raised its price target to $366 from $260.

Oil price jumps as Middle East conflict intensifies

Oil prices climbed around 4% on Friday as the conflict between the United States and Iran escalated, increasing concerns over energy supplies through the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea.

Brent crude rose to $87.77 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate climbed to $82.19. Both benchmarks were on track for weekly gains of about 14%.

The market reacted after Iran launched additional strikes on US facilities across the Middle East following another wave of American attacks on Iranian military targets. 

Concerns also grew after Iran urged Houthi forces to consider disrupting Red Sea shipping if US strikes expanded.

Gold price rebounds but remains headed for weekly loss

Gold prices rose on Friday but remained on track for their largest weekly decline in six weeks as rising oil prices fueled inflation concerns and strengthened expectations that US interest rates could remain higher for longer.

Spot gold gained 0.9% to $4,005.83 an ounce, while US gold futures settled 0.58% higher at 4,015.10. 

Despite Friday's recovery, bullion was down about 2.6% for the week.

Goldman Sachs noted: “gold's share in private portfolios remains low, and recent geopolitical developments, including Iran and broader tensions, may accelerate diversification beyond central banks to private investors.”